Constellations
by qpritchie1
Summary: Brandon Wooldridge is forced to live with his aunt in Tree Hill after his parents find out that he's gay. Can he make a new life in Tree Hill? Better than it sounds! FULL SUMMARY INSIDE! MM Slash Lucas/OMC. Rated M for a reason. Please RxR!
1. Runaway

Hey guys! I can't get over this dream I had about the PERFECT One Tree Hill story! Slight AU and kind of OOC, but only when it comes to sexual preference : )

Summary: Brandon Wooldridge's parents wanted nothing to do with him after they found out he was gay. Now, he begins to start his life anew with his Aunt Kaylin. He can't help but feel hatred toward his parents that stopped loving him when he knew who he realized he didn't want to live his life a lie. Brandon is hoping to put it all behind, maybe meet some new friends, and possibly, a boyfriend.

Pairings: Mainly Lucas/OC and with a little of Nathan/Haley, Peyton/Jake, and Brooke/OC.

I do not own One Tree Hill, sadly. But I do own Brandon and his family.

By the way, I apologize for the lack of sequence separations. This site is weird and it wouldn't let me do a one-liner used any characters. So instead, when you see **One Tree Hill** in bold, that means it's a new scene.

**One Tree Hill**

God, the last week passed by in such a blur. I just remember yelling, lots and lots of yelling. And crying, lots of that, too. Luckily, my Aunt Kaylin decided to take me in after my parent's decided that they had no son. Harsh, right? Well, I got the better end of the stick. Kaylin couldn't care less who I did or didn't like. In fact, she encourages me to be myself at all times. A big change from what I used to live like.

"Here's the rest of your stuff, Bran," Kaylin said, setting a small box of DVD's on my bed.

"Thanks, Kaylin," I said rather depressingly. Kaylin sighed and sat down next to me on my bed.

"I know it must be hard for you, Brandon, but you'll have a better life here. No need to hide your secret in your own home. My sister and your dad will never be here to disown you. But I'm here. And all I'll ever do is love you." she smiled sweetly and pulled me into a side hug.

"Thanks, Kaylin." I smiled back, leaning into her embrace. "I think I'm gonna go for a walk, if that's okay...?" I asked her. I had to be by myself. I needed the peace only a lonely walk could provide.

"Of course it's okay. Just be home for dinner, okay? I'm making my famous call to the Thai restaurant." she chuckled. I nodded and left my room to head for the front door.

**ONE TREE HILL**

I walked for about 15 minutes and ended up in a populated part of town. Way more commotion than the area I lived, but it was still very "small-town." The wind was slightly picking up, giving my dark brown hair motion. My stomach started growling. I looked at the time on my cell phone, which read 2:07. There was still some time before dinner. I looked around to see if there was some restaurant I could grab something at. I decided to go to this nice little place called, "Karen's Cafe."

I walked into it, instantly greeted by the sound of dozens of conversations from the cafe's customers. I sat myself in the closest booth to the door, being that it was the only free seating in the entire place.

"Hi, what can I get for you today?" he said, gazing down at me. I was speechless. He was, by far, the hottest guy I've ever seen. His sandy blonde hair was engulfed by sunlight from the open window, making it brighter and lighter than it really was. His piercing blue eyes looking into my green ones.

"Umm...umm...what do you got?" I asked sheepishly. He chuckled and pointed to the menu next to my hand. "Oh..." I said, blushing profusely. I hope he didn't notice that. I skimmed over the menu quickly to decide what I would have. "Umm...BLT with onion rings, I guess." It came out somewhat quieter than I expected, but he caught it.

"Alright. Anything to drink?" he asked, looking back from his notepad back into my gaze.

"Iced tea, please." I said a little louder this time, making sure I wasn't as quiet as before.

"Coming right up." he smiled. Oh jeez...what an insanely amazing smile. It was almost angelic, but it was too manly to be. He turned around after a couple of seconds to place the order.

As I waited for my food, I kept glancing over at him, and he seemed to do the same...I think. I only saw him face me out of the corner of my eye, never really catching him.

"Here's your food." The waiter said, placing my plate in front of me, along with a tall glass of iced tea.

"Can I get you anything else?" he asked patiently, looking back down at me.

"I think I'm good." I said, my gaze never escaping his own. He nodded and went back to the other customers. I ate my food, which was fantastic, and left a hearty tip. I exited the cafe, giving one last glance at my waiter, who was talking to some woman behind the counter, who I assumed was the owner. I left the cafe with a grin on my face and thoughts of him rushing through my brain.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Wow, that was great Kaylin. You really do know how to order." I said, chuckling slightly.

"Eh, it's a talent. You'll pick up on it once you're here long enough." she grinned, taking one last bite of some sort of chicken. Looks like I do have some work to do when it comes to ordering in. I got up, grabbed the dishes off the table, and headed for the sink. "Ah uh uh...we have a dishwasher for that kind of stuff." she said, taking the plates from my hand and placing them into an empty dishwasher.

"Oh...sorry. Not really used to that...they always had me do the dishes by hand..." I said, looking down at the floor. She rubbed my back consolingly in response to my sudden change in attitude.

"Oh, I have a job you can do though, Bran," she mentioned, turning toward the corner of the kitchen. "You can take out the trash for me." she said, sweetly smiling at me, gesturing at the waist-high white trashcan next to the backdoor.

"I'd be happy to." I said, grabbing the bag of garbage, heading out the front door with the rustle of plastic following me.

I put the bag into the much larger trashcan and gazed up at the moon. It was absolutely breathtaking. Back where I lived, you couldn't see the sky like this. It was usually just a handful of stars and a moon peaking out from behind a building. Here, it was just so open and freeing. I decided to just stare up and look for constellations. Seeing as I'm not an astrologist, it was a pretty difficult. I decided to head back inside, despite the natural beauty above me, but I heard running footsteps coming down the street.

It was the waiter from the cafe. Seems he had just come back from a late-night jog because he was wearing baggy shorts and a muscle shirt, which was now stained on his chest by his own sweat. He looked up and stopped dead in his tracks, locking his eyes with mine. He rushed to me, reaching into his pocket. I turned to face him, but looked at him quizzically.

"Here." he said, panting. "You left your cell phone in the cafe." I'm not gonna lie. His panting...pretty sexy...

"Oh, thanks. I didn't even realize I didn't have it on me." I chuckled, putting the phone back into my pocket.

"No problem." he said sweetly, grinning widely while rubbing the back of his head. "You know, I don't seem to recognize you. Are you new to this town?" he asked curiously.

"Umm...y-yeah," I responded hesitantly. "I just moved in with my aunt." I said, gesturing back to the house behind me.

"You're...you're Kaylin's nephew?" he said, still grinning but looking rather surprised.

"I'm guessing you know her...?" I asked, grinning.

"Well, you could say that. Looks like we're next door neighbors." he said, gesturing toward the house sitting on the corner of the street, next to my aunt's.

"Oh, wow. Didn't see that one coming." I laughed lightly, which was returned by my new neighbor.

"Hey, time for dinner!" the woman from the cafe called from their front porch.

He looked at the woman calling him and then back at me with an apologetic look on his face. "Umm..I got to go. My mom is calling for me. But since your new, maybe you wouldn't mind a little tour of the town tomorrow...?" he suggested, looking slightly hopeful.

"No, sounds fun." I said, smiling at him.

"Great. I'll come over around 10-ish." he said, grinning shyly, which was also pretty sexy.

"Sounds great. See you tomorrow." I said, smiling once again. "Oh, I'm Brandon, by the way." I introduced myself, stopping at the path leading up to the house.

"Nice to meet you, Brandon. I'm Lucas." he mentioned before turning back toward his house. I sighed dreamily and walked back into the house.

I could hear the sound of the television coming from the family room down the hall. "Hey, mind if I go out tomorrow? Maybe get to know the town a little bit better?" I asked, walking into the room, plopping myself down onto the couch.

"Sure, no problem. I have to work tomorrow, anyways. Wish I could take you around myself, though." she said, turning toward me.

"Oh, don't worry about it. I can handle it." I grinned. "So what we watching?" I asked curiously, turning my attention toward the television.

"Some teen soap. 'One Rose Valley,' something or other." she said, distractedly telling me while keeping her gaze toward the screen.

"Not really my thing, Kaylin, but you keep watching. I think I'm going to turn in." I said, getting up from where I was sitting and heading down the hall toward my room.

"'Kay. Good night, Bran." she called from her spot on the couch.

I entered my room and plugged my cell phone into it's charger and got on my laptop. I decided to head into a chat room for gay teens, hoping to find a new friend that might have even gone through with what I did. I decided to play some music so I opened my iTunes window and clicked "shuffle." The Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Runaway" started to play.

_I was feeling sad._

_Can't help looking back._

_Highways flew by._

_Run, run, run away._

_No sense of time._

_Want you to stay._

_Want to keep you inside_

_Run, run, run away._

_Lost, lost, lost my mind._

_Want you to stay._

_Want you to be my prize._

_**ping **_

My monitor blipped and a window was flashing in my task bar. Looks like I got a private message.

**MrR4567** – _hey whats up_

I decided to type him a message back.

**XxStud17xX** – _not much going on here. How about you_

**MrR4567** – _same here, just listening to some music_

**XxStud17xX** – _oh yeah? What kind of music do you listen to_

_**MrR4567**_ _has signed off _

"...prick..." I sighed before closing out of the chat room and shutting my laptop off. I threw my shirt on the floor and climbed into bed, pulling my green comforter over me as I slowly drifted off to sleep.

**ONE TREE HILL**

_He kissed my neck as I moaned into his. I frantically pushed his shirt up, making sure that the loss of contact was only for a split second. I could feel him caress the back of my head while I rubbed my hands over the newly exposed flesh. He quickly pulled my shirt off and began trailing hungry kisses down my torso, each kiss loaded with such a shivering pleasure that I had to stifle my moans._

_He came back up and greedily captured my lips in his, his sprinkle of facial hair tickling my lips. I flipped him over and started rubbing my way down his stomach, unbuttoning his jeans. All that could be heard in the room was heavy panting from both parties, until the door swung open._

"_What the FUCK is going on here?!" I turned, terrified, toward the angry, drunken face of my father._

**ONE TREE HILL**

I woke up in cold sweat, gasping for air. I frantically grabbed for my phone, flipping it open to reveal it was 3:31. I sighed and laid my head back onto the pillow. Only 4 more hours until I had to wake up. I scoffed at the thought. _Only...?_!

**ONE TREE HILL**

So, what'd ya think. Review please! Next chapter should be up soon! _**Review, PLEASE!!!**_


	2. Self Esteem

Hey, again! Decided to update in the same weekend since I got so many visits over the weekend...but no reviews =( You guys gotta remember...reviews are what keeps me writing lol Whether they be good or bad.

Anyways, hope that last chapter was okay. I thought the steamy memory dream thing was a nice touch, no? And I forgot to mention that this is still based near the beginning of Season 1.

Okay, here is the next chapter for you guys. It took me, literally, all day to finish it. Hope you enjoy it! =)

By the way, I apologize for the lack of sequence separations. This site is weird and it wouldn't let me do a one-liner used any characters. So instead, when you see **One Tree Hill** in bold, that means it's a new scene.

**ONE TREE HILL**

_**BEEP BEEP BEEP**_

My alarm clock startled me from a very light sleep. I was still rather shaken by last night's dream. I know I was stupid enough to think that my parents would be gone longer than they were, but I'm 17...what could I do? My hormones get in the way of my logic skills.

I turned my alarm clock off and headed for the bathroom to get a shower for today with Lucas. On the way there, I saw a note on the counter. My name was labeled on the outside of it, clearly standing out with red marker on the back side of the note. Out of curiosity, I decided to go ahead and read it before jumping in the shower.

_I'm most likely already at work by the time you read this, but I just wanted to let you know that I've already registered you at the local high school. They told me you can get your schedule tomorrow morning once you get there._

_Anyways, I hope you have a nice time exploring the town today. Just be back by 7. I'm introducing you to my best friend, we're going to his house for dinner. Pick out something nice to wear, you want to make a good impression, don't you?_

_Kaylin_

I chuckled at how thorough she was to introducing me to the town. Not even a day before I completely move in and she's already making me go to dinner with her. Not that I mind. Maybe it'll be fun, who knows?

I tossed the note back on the counter and grabbed a towel from the linen closet and headed for the bathroom.

**ONE TREE HILL**

After a quick shower and shave, I picked out my outfit for today and what I was gonna wear tonight. I decided to wear something semi-casual for the dinner later on. A crimson dress shirt with black Dickies and black and white Converse. But I had in mind something completely different for today. A green graphic t-shirt, faded jeans, and a pair of checkered Vans.

I got dressed and looked at the time on my cell phone. Hmm...still 8:30...what am I gonna do for the next hour and a half? Back to the chat room?

I scrolled down the list of names and and noticed that the guy from last night was on. I decided to chat him up again and see why he left so abruptly.

**XxStud17xX** –_ hey whats up_

**MrR4567** – _hey. Youre that guy from last night, right? Sorry about just leaving like that. My mom came into my room and she doesnt exactly know yet_

I felt like an ass. Here I was, ready to blow up on him, and he was really just living the same life I had lived just a week ago. I felt the color from my face wash away as memories from the confrontation rushed back into my head.

_My mother was sobbing into a tissue on the couch while my father was pacing back and forth, his face red hot. The first words that came out of his mouth were, "You can't live here anymore. My son isn't a queer. In fact, my son is dead." He screamed, facing me. _

_My boyfriend at the time, Austin, stood up with a furious look on his face and said, "Don't you dare talk to Brandon like that! He's a great son, more than either of you deserve!" _

_I could see my Dad's face get even redder with fury before he yelled"Shut up, you fairy!" and punched Austin across the mouth, landing him on the floor._

"_What the fuck is your problem?!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, glaring at my father in disbelief. "For God's sake, Dad! You've known Austin since he was two years old! If you have a problem with my sexual preference, then take it out on me, not him!" I spit out in anger, poison burning throughout the words._

**MrR4567**_ – you still there_

The sudden blip of the new message startled me out of my own thoughts.

**XxStud17xX** – _yeah, sorry. The phone rang_

**MrR4567** – _oh thats ok dont worry about it_

A couple of minutes passed without any messages. I didn't know what to talk about.

**MrR4567** – _hey I got to go talk to you later_

_**MrR4567** has signed off_

I sighed and closed my laptop. I grabbed for my cell phone. Still only 9. Guess I could watch television or something. Not much else to do in a town you don't know one thing about.

**ONE TREE HILL**

_**DING DONG**_

I quickly glanced at the window by the door and saw a silhouette of Lucas. I turned the television off and rushed to answer the door. I straightened out my shirt and glanced at the wall clock next to the door. It was still only 9:30. Despite it, I opened the door.

"A little early, aren't we?" I said before realizing that it wasn't Lucas at all, but some guy, maybe mid thirties.

"Oh, uh, sorry. I was looking for Kaylin. Is she home?" the man said, while looking peeking through the house.

"Umm...no, she's not. She's already at work. But I can tell her you stopped by." I said while closing the door a little bit more, feeling slightly disturbed that he was now peering in.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Tell her Rick stopped by." he said, still trying to peek in through the crack in the door.

"Yeah...I'll do that...bye..." I said rudely, but it was necessary to be pushy, he gave me the creeps.

"Bye." he said before quickly turning and making his way back to his black Toyota Camry. I closed the door and decided to do one last check of everything in the house; locked doors, windows, stuff like that.

_**KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**_

God, I hope this time it's really him.

I opened the door and there he was. He was wearing a red t-shirt, dark wash jeans and white sneakers. He looked insanely cute. He gave me a quick once-over before I greeted him.

"Hey Lucas," I greeted with a smile.

"Hey, Brandon. You ready?" he asked, grinning sweetly at me, making himself look incredibly adorable.

"Yeah, one sec. Just let me grab my stuff." I said, reaching for my wallet and keys on the table near the door. "Alright." I grinned.

"So, where do you wanna go first?" he asked while walking down the stairs of the porch.

"Well...I'm new, remember? Not much of an idea of where the best places to go are, you know?"

"Oh, right. Sorry." he chuckled while rubbing the back of his head in slight embarrassment. "Just doesn't really feel like you are." he mentioned, looking over at me. I smiled in return. "Alright, then. How about an early lunch?"

"Umm...sure. Where did you have in mind?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Just a small little place on the boardwalk." he said, entering his car.

"Wow, 'small little place.' You have a way with words, dude." I teased, opening the passenger door, seeing that Lucas was chuckling.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"So," I chuckled while getting out of the car. "she was just sitting there and you didn't even notice?" I said, stifling my chuckles long enough to talk.

"Haha, yeah. I jumped at least six feet when I finally noticed ten minutes later." he said, chuckling at his memory from when he was 14. It made me laugh even harder.

"So, where's this restaurant you were talking about?" I asked while looking around for it. But the boardwalk was beautiful. People walking around, enjoying themselves, with the sound of waves crashing against the shore. You could smell a mix of ocean water and various foods from across the boardwalk.

"Well, this is it. Thought maybe you'd like a view of the beach while eating, kill two birds with one stone." he said, walking around his car to stand beside me.

"Sounds awesome, but now we gotta figure out what boardwalk delicacy we're gonna eat." I said, walking toward the railing.

"Well, we can always sample everything, but I'm pretty sure there's not enough money in the worldfor that kind of treatment." he chuckled, leaning onto the railing.

"And not enough room in my stomach, either." I grinned, facing him.

"Tell you what, how about we just grab some coffee and wait awhile before we eat. I mean, it's still pretty early." he suggested, gazing at a small coffee stand about 7 buildings down.

"Wow, already with the empty promises? I was promised an early lunch and you just go and crush my hopes and dreams like that. Damn you, Lucas." I teased, making him smile at me.

"Well, we can always eat now, too." he mentioned, still grinning.

"No, no. My hopes are already crushed into itty bitty dust particles. Coffee is fine." I continued, a grin creeping upon my face.

"'Itty bitty?' And _I'm_ the one who has a way with words?" he said, which made us both laugh while we headed toward said coffee stand. After ordering our coffee, we found an empty table not too far from it.

"So, what kind of movies do you like to watch?" he asked me while sipping his coffee.

"Well, I like all kinds of movies. No, wait. That's a lie. I'm not much of an action-y type of guy. I just find most of them incredibly unrealistic, but some, I can handle watching. What about you? What genre do you like best?" I ranted, mixing sugar and cream into my black coffee.

"Well, you're probably gonna laugh but I like independent films. My favorite is this one called, 'Run Lola Run." It's actually kind of action-y. But I'm actually more of a book person."

"I am, too...kind of." I chuckled. "Well, with certain books, anyways. Like, my favorite is 'The Great Gatsby.' It's a classic. I love the way F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the meanings of color into the scenes in the book. Definitely leaves a lasting impression, don't you think?" I ranted, sipping my coffee to make sure it had enough sugar, which it did.

"Umm...wow...I'm speechless," he chuckled, "I've never met another guy who would openly talk about anything other than sex, beer, sports, or food." he said, still slightly flabbergasted at our discussion.

"Well," I chuckled "we can always talk about that stuff, too. I'm very versatile when it comes to conversations." I said, adjusting myself in my seat.

"Nah, 'The Great Gatsby,' is great to keep talking about." he said, smirking. "Like how..."

"Hey Luke!" a girl with light brown hair greeted, shopping bag in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. Her brown eyes reflected the ocean, which in turn, was reflecting the sunlight. Almost made her eyes look like they were made of jewels.

"Oh, hey Hales. What's up?" he greeted with a hug

"Oh," she exclaimed, looking down into her bag, "I just got some movies for me and my parents to watch tonight." she said, looking through her selection.

"Yeah?" then, he looked over at me. "OH! Haley, this is Brandon. He just moved here." he said.

"Hi." I greeted, my hand extended to shake hers. She shook it and smiled sweetly.

"Oh, that's cool. You going to school here?" she asked curiously, pushing her hair away from her face.

"Yeah, Tree Hill High. I start tomorrow, I guess." I said, still sipping at the hot beverage that rested in my grasp.

"Oh, that's where we go. What grade are you in?" she asked, now grabbing a seat next to us.

"I'm a Junior." I mentioned, feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the attention I was getting.

"We are, too. Wow, what a coincidence, huh Luke?" she said, playfully punching him in the arm, giving him a look I couldn't quite distinguish.

"Yeah, yes it is..." he said, giving Haley an annoyed look in return.

"Well, we should give you a tour tomorrow morning. You know, so you get a feel of the school." she suggested, a smile peaking at the corners of her mouth.

"Well, I'm all for that." I said, glancing over at Luke, who looked amused at how pushy Haley was.

"Good. Well, I gotta go, guys. My parentals await. Later" she said, leaving the table, waving. I smiled at her, and it was returned.

"She's nice." I said, getting back to my cup coffee and back to facing Lucas.

"Yeah. She's always been pushy. She's been my best friend since we were little." he said, now gesturing toward Haley.

"Oh, that's cool. I had one of those." I said, sadly. He gave me a consoling look, even though he didn't really know the reason why I was sad.

We talked for an a few more hours, our coffees being ice cold by the time we were done. We decided it was time to eat lunch, so we went to a food stand that sold hot dogs and sat down near a gyro stand, which was giving off a funky smell, so we moved back to where we were sitting when we had coffee. We talked about all sorts of random things. Favorite foods; mine is mac and cheese while his mom's chili. Apparently, she also owns that cafe I went to yesterday. Favorite Candy; His are jellybeans, mine are Dots. There was just a lot of conversation about food in general, basically.

Once we were done, he decided to take me to a park with a big basketball court.

"This...is the River Court. It's where me and my friends are always playing basketball," he looked down and chuckled. "Looks like they left their basketball." He picked up the orange ball. It was so worn that it had lost it's grip and it had somewhat of a greyish tone.

"Wanna play?" I offered, gesturing toward the court.

"You any good?" he asked, looking at me with a surprised look.

"Oh, I can so kick your butt at it." I teased. I decided to be slick and pick the ball from his grip and dribbled it over to one of the baskets, attempting to make a lay-up, but failing miserably. "Ok...maybe not kick your butt, but it sure would be nice to." he chuckled and grabbed the ball from me.

"Well, it's always nice to take a break from a real game and play with an amateur." he teased back, now smiling widely, making my heart skip a beat.

"Hey!...no, wait. You're right." I chuckled, which made him do the same. "Play anyways?" I offered.

"Sure, why not?" he said, tossing me the ball. "Take it out."

After about thirty minutes later, he was kicking my ass; 19-2. If you were there that day, you would have seen how miserably I played. But Lucas and I, we found it pretty entertaining.

"Alright, one last point and I win." he said, getting ready to make his final point into victory.

"...Show-off." I said playfully while giving him a teasing glare.

I faked to the left and passed him. I almost made a lay-up but stopped abruptly because I almost tripped over myself. Lucas then ran into me with a loud 'oompf,' making us both fall down. He fell on top me while the basketball dribbled away.

We were so close that I could feel his breath against my face, panting. We just gazed into each other's eyes, still panting from the exercise. Being this close to him sent shivers down my spine out of complete pleasure from it. I could feel myself start to get hard, cursing my hormonal body. Luckily, he got off of me before it became obvious.

"Sorry," he apologized, "I should looked where I was going instead of running blindly." he chuckled, helping me up.

"Don't apologize. It was my bad, I almost tripped over my own two feet, which is why I stopped so suddenly like that." I explained, now blushing incredulously. I must have been five shades of red.

We both laughed it off and headed back to his car.

"Come on, we should probably get you home. It's almost time for that dinner with your aunt." he said, looking a little bit sad but he tried to seem like he was still juiced from the game.

"Oh, alright." I said, sadly. He must feel awkward after the little incident...ok...big incident...yeah, ok, it was a pretty awkward incident. I kind of wish it didn't happen but I kind of wish I could replay it over and over. I could still feel the presence of his warm breath, just lingering there.

**ONE TREE HILL**

We pulled into his driveway, the shine of the headlights shining onto the garage door. I noticed my aunt's car was already in the driveway. She was probably inside getting ready for dinner.

I started to get out when I realized that the black car from earlier was parked across the street with Rick still inside. The car was turned off, like he was waiting for something.

"Wait," I exclaimed, "see that car? It belongs to some sketchy guy that was looking for Kaylin in the morning. I'm not sure exactly who he is, but he did say his name was Rick. Do you know him?"

"Rick? Yeah, he dated your mom for about half a year." he said, gazing at the car through his side mirrors.

"'Dated?' As in, done?" I asked curiously, getting kind of nervous.

"Yeah, I think so. I'm not sure why they broke up, though." Lucas said, now facing me. "I'm sure it's fine. Maybe he's just waiting for aunt to talk to her about something." he said soothingly, trying to bring myself to feel safe.

"You think so? Can you...umm...help me get inside, maybe?" I asked with fear. "I'm way too creeped out by him to go in there alone." I said, trying to still look at least the tiniest bit manly, but I doubt that it worked.

Lucas chuckled. "Sure, no problem. Come on." he said, getting out of his car. I followed him with caution. As soon as I got out, I noticed that Rick had seen me, and he started his car and drove away.

"Did you see that?! He left as soon as I got out of the car!" I pointed out, giving Lucas a freaked out look.

"Yeah, you're right," Lucas agreed, "He obviously didn't want to be noticed." he said, making a cute face as he pondered what had just happened. "Let me just walk you to the door. Don't want him coming back." he offered.

"Thanks, but I feel less paranoid now." I said, regretting it as soon as it came out. Stupid! _Always_ have the hot guy walk you to the door.

"Oh, well. Alright." he said, looking somewhat hurt. "Say 'hi' to your aunt for me." he said, making his way toward his porch.

"Oh...alright. You still giving me the tour of the school tomorrow?" I asked, hoping that after today, it wasn't too awkward between us.

"Yeah, no problem. Be ready by 7:30. Later, Brandon." he said while climbing up the steps of his porch.

"Alright," I said with a forced smile, "Bye, Lucas." I waved him goodbye before he slipped into his house.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Wow, nice house." I stated while getting out of my aunt's car.

"Yeah, it is, huh? He takes good care of it." Kaylin mentioned, looking around at the details of the house. She knocked on the door and I noticed what she was wearing.

"Wait, why aren't you dressed nice like you told me to dress?" I got out before the front door was answered. I guy with brown hair with tiny flecks of red answered. He was wearing a white t-shirt and jeans, no shoes or socks.

"Hey, Kay." he greeted, hugging my aunt. "And you must be Brandon..." he said, "I'm Larry." he shook my hand pretty roughly, but smiling nicely while doing so. "A little dressed up for a casual dinner, aren't you?" he stated, patting my shoulder.

"Umm...yeah, Kaylin told me to wear something nice..." I stated, giving my aunt an evil look while she just smiled devilishly. I swear, she can act like such a kid, sometimes.

"Kaylin! You're gonna kill the boy of embarrassment." Larry chuckled, gesturing for us to come inside.

"They're here!" he called to whoever was upstairs.

"Coming!" called back a woman, probably a teenager. I heard footsteps come down the stairs and a blonde girl with curly blonde hair walked down. She was wearing a black tank top and grey sweats. She chuckled when she saw me.

"Hey, Kaylin. I'm guessing his outfit is your doing?" she laughed while giving my aunt a quick hug, then facing me.

"Hi, I'm Peyton," she introduced herself.

"Hi. Brandon." I responded, feeling very out-of-place due to my outfit.

"Come on, let's go eat." Larry said, gesturing toward their kitchen.

We ate and had small talk. It was mostly just Larry and Kaylin talking while me and Peyton talked about our lives. I mentioned a lot about my life, as did she about hers, but I left out why I left my home and came to live with my aunt. After we were all done, I offered to wash the dishes, but Larry just said to leave them there and that he'd get them later. So, Peyton took me up to her room to hang out.

"Wow, you have A LOT of music." I said while looking incredulously looking over her collection.

"Yeah, I'm a big music person." she said, plopping down in her computer chair. "What about you? What kind of music do you listen to?" she asked curiously

"Alternative. Not all that into the classics that much. That's where I differ from your tastes. But I love you Dashboard Confessional collection. They're one of my favorite bands." I said, flipping over a CD to look at the song list.

"Oh, I know, right? They're awesome. My boyfriend isn't really fond of them though. He's more into rap and hip-hop...definitely not my scene." she stated, now standing next to me going through her collection. She grabbed a CD and put it into her computer.

"What's this?" I asked before the song played, but then I heard the familiar sound of my favorite Offspring song play, "Self Esteem."

_I wrote her off for the tenth time today_

_And practiced all the things I would say_

_When she came over, I lost my nerve_

_I took her back and made her desert_

_Now I know I'm being used_

_But that's okay man cause I like the abuse_

_I know she's playing with me_

_But that's okay cause I've got no self esteem._

"Oh, I love this song. What I wouldn't do to see The Offspring live!" I said while looking at the songs on the album.

"I have. Sadly, not so great in person." she said. I gave her a surprised look. "So, any cute guys around town?" she asked shamelessly. I looked at her with disbelief. How the fuck did she know?

"Relax, Brandon. Your aunt told my dad you batting for the other team, which he then told to me in return. It's a whole cycle. But, you can't be mad at her. They share a lot with each other." she said, saying all of this like if it were nothing.

"L-look," I stuttered, "You can't tell anybody else. I don't want to be completely out just yet." I said, hoping she wouldn't tell a soul.

"Don't worry," she smiled, "You're secret's safe with me." Peyton flopped down onto her bed and grabbed a magazine. I sighed in relief and went back to eyeing her collection.

"So..." she started.

"So...what?" I asked distractedly while looking at her Jet album.

"Were there?" she said devilishly.

"...were there what?" I asked, slightly confused but still distracted.

"Oh, come on, Bran! Fess up! Were there any guys you had your eye on around town?" she asked with excitement.

"Peyton!" I exclaimed in slight annoyance and amusement. Nobody's ever been interested in my love life before so it was kind of nice to have that kind of attention. "Ok...one..." I gave in, turning away to blush.

She laughed and said, "Spill!" while she was making herself more comfortable on her bed, grabbing a pillow to go under her elbows while she lied on her stomach.

"Geez, why are you so excited?" I asked, amused.

"Well, you're the first gay guy I've ever met. It's a big event here. I'm surprised there's no marching band going down the street as we speak with a banner that says, 'It's my first time dot dot dot meeting a gay guy!'" she said, making me burst into laughter.

"Alright. Do you know Lucas?" I asked, taking a seat in her chair.

"Scott?!" she asked in disbelief.

"Umm...I guess...? I don't know his last name. But he works at that restaurant...oh crap, what was it?"

"Karen's Cafe?" she answered for me. I nodded in response. "Then, yes. You are talking about one of the Scott brothers."

"He has brothers...?" I asked, interested.

"Just one, my boyfriend, Nathan. But they're only half-brothers." I gave her a disbelieving look. She sighed and went on. "Dan Scott, their father, got Karen, Lucas' mother, pregnant right after high school. He left her and went to college. Then, he got Deb, Nathan's mom, pregnant not to long after that. Their only a few months apart, nothing grade-seperating. Anyways, Karen and Lucas both despise Dan for just leaving Karen with nothing to raise the child all by herself, but Dan married Deb out of wedlock and now they live in this big, fancy house."

I stared at her with my jaw practically down to the floor while she looked bored. I gave her a questioning look.

"Oh, I've just told that story WAY too many times, don't mind me." she said, while looking at her nails. "Anyways, are you sure he's gay? Because he's not out or anything. Plus, aren't him and that 'Bailey' girl going out?"

"He said they're just best friends and that it's been that way for awhile..." I said, trying to convince her, but mostly trying to convince myself.

"Hmm, my mistake." she said, getting up to change the CD to a Switchfoot one.

**ONE TREE HILL**

We entered the house around 10:30. I was pretty exhausted from today.

"Alright, Kaylin. I'm gonna go to bed. I'll probably text Peyton to see if she wants to help me catch up with school and everything." I mentioned, heading toward my room.

"You...you got her number? Is she single again?" she asked.

"No, she's not." I said, edging toward the outcome of our discussion.

"Oh, so you told her you're gay?" she asked cheerily, face lighting up. "Well, it's great you're making frie---"

"Actually, I didn't have to...apparently, her dad had told her..." I stated, my aunt looking sorry.

"I'm sorry. It's just...I tell Larry ever---" she started.

I chuckled, "It's ok, Kaylin. I'm just yanking your chain. She said she'd keep it a secret, so I'm hoping that's the case." I called from the hallway.

"She's a good girl, she will." she responded. I closed my door bedroom door and put on a wife beater and shorts. I got into my bed and tried to go to sleep.

**ONE TREE HILL**

I looked at my cell phone. 12:30. I didn't seem to be able to go to sleep, despite my exhaustion. I decided to get some fresh air since I was still wide awake. I opened the door in my room that led to the side of the porch.

It was perfect out. Breezy, but not freezing. I love autumn weather. It's always like this.

"Couldn't sleep either?" Lucas called from his porch, startling me from my peaceful thoughts. He chuckled. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you there." Lucas said, slightly grinning. He was in nothing but grey sweats, which hung loosely around his hips. I couldn't help but giving him a once-over, which he didn't seem to notice.

"You didn't...you just...yeah, ok..." I gave in, feeling myself blush a little bit. "But yeah, I couldn't. I'm guessing you're out here for the same reason?" I asked curiously.

"Yeah, it's been happening lately. Can't seem to get myself to sleep until after two." he said, walking toward the railing on his porch.

"Oh, you have a door from your room to outside, too?" I asked, gesturing toward his open doorway, slightly peering into his clean room. I can see a slight peek of a blue comforter covering his bed splayed messily onto his mattress.

"Yup, a lot of these houses have that." he said, yawning, which made him look insanely adorable.

"I thought you said you weren't sleepy." I stated, leaning onto the railing of my porch.

"I never said that," he started, "I said I couldn't sleep, not that I wasn't tired." he said, looking rather drowsy.

"Yeah, same here, I guess. Wanna attempt it again?" I suggested.

"Hmm...yeah, ok." he said, "See you tomorrow, Brandon, bright and early." he said, making his way to his door while giving me a groggy wave.

"Later, Scott." I said. I mentally bitch slapped myself for saying that.

He turned around and gave me a confused look. "Wait...I never told you my last name...how'd you know about it?"

"Peyton told me. You know, your brother's girlfriend..." I confessed, hoping that it didn't bother him that I knew.

"So, I'm guessing you know my life story now, huh?" he asked. He didn't seem angry. In fact, he seemed a little bit afraid of something.

"Well, what she told me can't be everything. That type of thing doesn't define your life, just defines your life to the people who don't necessarily know you."

He smiled sweetly. "Thanks, man. I'm so sick of everybody judging me on my past. It's nice to have somebody new in my life who doesn't do that, you know?"

"Yeah. Good night, Luke." I forced a smile onto my face. He looks so happy right now. I feel bad that I know parts of his life, yet he knows nothing of mine. Maybe it's best to save it for another time. I don't want to poor my heart out at 12:30 in the morning.

"Night, Bran." he said before entering his house and closing his door behind him.

I went back inside, got under the comforter, and fell straight asleep.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"_So, I'm hoping that you know what you're doing." I looked up to see a guy with light brown hair and chocolate brown eyes, he was smiling playfully while taking a seat next to me, "'Cause I sure as hell don't." He pulled out a notebook and a pen. Our biology teacher, Mr. Pennington, had put something on the board about dissecting a sheep's eyeball. I was getting nauseous just thinking about it._

"_Umm...not really." I chuckled, "I'm not really good at the whole science thing. I'm more of an English type of guy." I said, hoping to start a conversation without any awkward moments._

"_Not me. I'm more of a math guy...which I think we have together. Webler, first period?" he asked._

"_Oh, yeah! Don't you sit next to that one guy with horrible B.O.?" I asked curiously, making a disgusted face at the thought of that boy's smell._

"_Unfortunately..." he said, sharing the same look I had._

_I looked up and jotted down whatever Mr. Pennington had put on the board._

"_I'm Brandon, by the way." I introduced while still staring down at the notebook._

"_Austin." I looked up and saw him smile sweetly at me. I returned it right away. There's something about him that makes me feel glad to be around him._

**ONE TREE HILL**

I woke up, tears streaming down my face. I couldn't help but completely meltdown right there and then. I could feel the tears staining my pillow as I cried myself to sleep once again.

**ONE TREE HILL**

Hope you guys liked it! I'm quite proud of this chapter. There was lots of revision during the creation of it. It took me about eleven hours to write, so I hope it was worth it lol Oh! And please, for the love of god, REVIEW!...thank you ^_^

~Ritchie


	3. Sweetness

**Hey again, guys! Hope you liked that last chapter because there's more to it as of today.**

**So, I decided that this might just go EVERYWHERE. I'm gonna be whoring the town out with a bunch of pairings lol. All except Haley/Nathan. Their love is eternal 3 There'll be a couple bisexual pairings, but most are hetero ones. I already mentioned most in the first chapter, but the rest are all surprises. Yay for suspense lol**

**Anyways, it's Brandon's first day of school, which means you'll meet every student I plan on having in the story in this chapter, although this is still based on season 1, so not everybody I want actually goes to Tree Hill High just yet. But they will... **

**So, I've got this ENTIRE series mapped out. It's going to be a bunch of different stories, kind of like T.V. Seasons. A bunch of drama ensues in each one, and not just to Brandon. I'm talking about the entire cast. But yes, I think my ideas are pretty amazing...which totally sounds conceited...but, they're definitely the best ideas for a story I've EVER had.**

**Pairings for this chapter: Peyton/Nathan, hints of the start of what will be Haley/Nathan. Just remember that in this story, no coupling is set in stone.**

**Anyways, here's your chapter! Read and Review, but most of all, enjoy it! =)**

By the way, I apologize for the lack of sequence separations. This site is weird and it wouldn't let me do a one-liner used any characters. So instead, when you see **One Tree Hill** in bold, that means it's a new scene.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

I found myself having trouble going back to sleep that night after having that dream. I couldn't help but think about the past that night. It overwhelmed me so much that I laid in my bed, sobbing, for over an hour. But, today is a new day. I shouldn't dwell on my past so much because it feels like I have a promising future here in Tree Hill.

I found myself waking up from my light slumber around seven. Realizing I forgot to set my alarm for school, I rushed out of bed and practically sprinted to the bathroom for a shower in record time. I came back and got dressed in whatever I could find. Just as I put my shirt on, there was a knock on my door. But it wasn't coming from my bedroom door. It was coming from the door that led outside.

"Hey, Luke." I greeted as I opened the door, gesturing for him to come in. "Sorry. I'm running kind of late, forgot to set my alarm." I said, quickly grabbing my keys, backpack, and cell phone.

"Nah, that's ok. I was a little sluggish myself this morning. I didn't really get much sleep last night." he said, rubbing his neck, groaning. It sent shivers down my spine and blood down to my crotch. I'm telling you, he makes insomnia look extremely sexy.

"Y-yeah...me...me n-neither." I responded, hoping to get my mind of sex for one second so that my arousal wouldn't be so obvious. "Let's go." I said, locking the door behind me.

"Alright. Haley said she'd meet us there. She had to go a little early to tutor somebody, I'm not really sure who." he said, leading us out the door and to his car.

"Oh...no...no problem." I said, distractedly checking out his ass, smirking to myself at the dirty thoughts that ran through my mind.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Oh! So your mom is that cafe owner!" I said, finally putting two and two together. Lucas chuckled in amusement at my slow processing skills.

"Alright, let's head to the main office and grab your schedule. It's this way." he gestured, walking alongside me. I looked around at all the students, and there sure were a lot to look around at. The school was pretty packed for such a small town. Everywhere I looked, there was some clique keeping to themselves. Everybody was isolated from one another, definitely not like it was at my old school.

"Oh, hey guys." Haley greeted, catching up to us, her binder seeming to bounc in her hands as she did so. "So, where are we headed? The infamous hallway or that other hallway. Ooh, or maybe that hallway by that other hallway." she said sarcastically.

"He gets it, Hales. Not much in this school." Lucas said, looking amused at his friends sarcastic personality. I could see why he was best friends with her, she's fun to be around.

"Excuse me," I started, "I'm here to pick up my schedule. Brandon Wooldridge." I informed at the office secretary. Lucas and Haley were standing by the doors to the office having a conversation about birds attacking Haley or something. Hmm...a bunch of crows also known as a murder of crows. Who knew? Lucas Scott did.

"Here you go, Mr. Wooldridge. Have a nice day." the secretary said, handing me my schedule with a fake smile plastered on her face. You could tell she resented ever taking this job. Mental note: decline this job at all costs or you might end up like this disgruntled lady.

"Ok, let us see!" Haley said excitedly, snatching the paper out of my hands, both me and Lucas grinning at her enthusiasm.

"You and Luke have 1st, 4th, and 7th together, while you and I have 2nd and 7th. Looks like we're all English buddies by the end of the day." Haley smiled, still analyzing the list of classes. I frowned at the three periods that I would be all alone in. Lucas noticed and gave me a knowing look.

"Don't worry, Brandon. Those periods will go by fast. Hell, maybe you'll even make some new friends." he said, smiling at me comfortingly. I returned it and started toward the door of the office.

"Although," Haley started, "you better not because we're the best friends you're gonna find in this hellhole." Her statement made all three of us burst into laughter as we walked out of the office. I could hear the secretary mumble something about 'loud turds,' but I shrugged it off, knowing damn well that it wouldn't make a difference if I noticed or not.

The bell rang, signaling the students to start toward wherever they belonged for the first period of the day.

"Oh. That's my cue. I'll see you boys later." Haley said, walking off in the opposite direction.

"So, our first period teacher won't have me do the whole introduction thing, right? Because I fucking hate those things." I joked, but only a little bit. I really did hate the spotlight. I always found it extremely uncomfortable.

"Well..." he started, wincing. "I mean, it's only the second week into school...maybe it'll be short and sweet...?"

"Oh, Lord..." I exclaimed, making him chuckle.

We made it to the classroom, he gestured for me to go in first. God, he's so kind. We both found a seat near the back, hoping not to draw attention to myself.

The Algebra II teacher, Ms. Kingston, took roll and got to my name and paused. I winced, knowing what was coming next.

"Class, it seems we have a new student. Brandon Wooldridge, please, tell us something about yourself.

"Umm...I'd rather not..." I said shyly, sinking lower into my seat while I turned a couple shades of bright red.

"_cough '_Fag!' _cough" _some raven-haired jock said, getting a high-five from the guy sitting next to him in response. I turned to Lucas and he was giving the jock the most hating glare. Man, if looks could kill, that guy would have combusted by now.

"Mr. Scott! Mr. Smith! That is quite enough." the teacher scolded. But she wasn't looking at Lucas. She was glaring at the jock. Wow...the other Scott. Didn't think I'd see him so soon. I glanced over at Lucas, who gave me an apologetic look. I mouthed the words.

"It's ok," I said softly, "he's a douche. He doesn't deserve any more attention than he already gets by being a meathead jock." I said reassuringly to Lucas, who still looked somewhat pissed off, but he got less tense after I told him.

"I apologize deeply, Mr. Wooldridge, for Mr. Scott's behavior. Please, tell us where you came from." she said, still glaring at Lucas' half-brother.

"Umm...Charlotte..." I muttered just loud enough for the class to hear me. She nodded, quickly changing the subject by starting our lesson.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Look, don't let Nate get to you. He's just an ass." Lucas said, still trying to comfort me.

"Luke, stop," I said, trying to get him to relax, "You don't think we have any 'Nathans' at my old school? I mean, they're all the same jackasses wherever you go." It seemed to make Lucas a little bit more comfortable knowing that I knew not to let it bother me.

"Alright, I have to head to my other class. You know where your next class is?" he asked kindly.

"Luke, I can read a couple of numbers off a paper. I'll be fine." I teased, making him smirk slightly.

"Alright, then. Later, man." He walked backwards in the direction of his next class, but ran into some poor, innocent soul. It made me burst into laughter while Lucas gave me a few forced chuckles while apologizing to the girl he practically ran over.

On the way to class, I spotted Haley turn a corner. I decided we should probably walk to class together considering we have the same one. I turned that same corner and saw her chatting it up with Nathan. Whatever it was, Haley looked very frustrated. But, I think it's way too early for me to start butting in with my opinions, so I pulled out my schedule, read the room number, and walked to class without her.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

I made my way to an empty table in the middle of the room, putting my backpack in the seat next to mine for Haley.

The bell rang just after Haley walked into the room, letting out a flustered sigh before moving my bag to sit next to me.

"Hey, who said that seat was for you?" I teased. She didn't even react. "Haley?"

"Huh?" she said distractedly, getting out a pen and a notebook.

"Ermm, nothing. Haley...are you okay?" I asked, concerned of what Nathan had said to her.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm....I'm fine. Just...tired, I guess." she said, pulling off the most fake yawn known to man, but nonetheless, it caused me to yawn in response.

"Damn it, Haley. See what you started?" I said, pointing at my open mouth. Soon enough, the whole classroom, even the teacher, started yawning. I gestured grandly to what Haley had done, but she didn't seem to notice. Instead, she was writing something down into her notebook that was already written on her hand. 'Meet at boardwalk, 6 A.M.' Maybe it has something to do with Nathan...or something...Then again, maybe I shouldn't be jumping to conclusions.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

2nd period passed by rather quickly. My thoughts weren't really cooperating with me. They were more focused on Haley's possible situation. I couldn't help but think that something was wrong.

After saying bye to Haley, I stonily made my way to my next class. I reluctantly sat down in the first empty seat I saw. My thoughts were interrupted by somebody blocking my view of the chalkboard.

"Hey there, hottie," a girl with shoulder length brown hair and a cheerleading outfit greeted. "I'm Brooke. What's your name." she asked flirtataciously, giving me a lustful look, making me cringe at the intensity.

"Umm...Brandon..." I responded, giving her my best 'wtf' look. She put her hand on my chest rather awkwardly.

"Well, Brandon. How about a personal welcoming to the school?" she winked suggestively. I cringed.

"Umm...no, thanks..." I responded, rather shocked at how forward she was.

"...What?" Brooke said in an surprised look upon her face.

"The poor guy said, no, Brooke." a guy with curly, brown hair defended.

She looked over at the guy and then back at me. "Alright. Well...come looking for me if you change your mind." she said, trying to be sexy. To any other guy, they would jump at the chance, but to me, obviously, her powers of persuasion didn't exactly work on me. She gave up and went back to her seat next to some blonde girl. I think I had her last period. Bevin...something or other.

"I'm Jake, by the way." he said kindly, extending his hand out to me.

"Brandon." I responded, shaking his hand in gratitude. "Hey, thanks for the shielding. Is Brooke always that...uh...abrasive?" I thanked, still dumbfounded at the cheerleader's behavior.

"Eh, sometimes. Guess you caught her on one of those days." he said, gesturing toward the brunette.

"Lucky me..." I muttered under my breath, taking out a pencil to start to write what was on the board.

"You're the new kid, right?" I nodded in response. "Where you from?" Jake asked, changing the subject rather quickly.

"Oh, uh, Charlotte." I said, giving him a fake smirk. I must have said that response at least 20 times today.

"Oh, yeah? My cousin lives there. Did you go to Washington High?" he asked curiously.

"Sure did. What's your cousin's name?" I said, perking up at a somewhat similarity with somebody other than Lucas and Haley all day.

"Austin Mariano." My heart stopped. All the memories came flooding back to me, again.

"Umm...n-no...I...I don't know who t-that is..." I said, suddenly very bashful. I was very aware of the loss of color in my face.

"Oh...ok..." he said, dropping the subject. I mentally sighed and got back to the work on the board.

"Look...I hate to ask, but do you understand any of this crap?" Jake asked pointing his pen at the board, looking a bit frustrated.

"Enough to help, maybe. Half-lives are exactly what they sound like." I grinned widely, which he returned, and continued helping him with the work.

It was nice getting to talk to to somebody new, especially somebody as nice as Jake. Apparently, he's on the basketball team, which I would never have even guessed. I mean, sure, he has the body of one, but not so much the personality. It threw my stereotypes right out the window. During the entire class, I noticed Brooke gazing over at me, which made me uncomfortable. I mean, don't get me wrong. It's nice to know that you're attractive, but girls hitting on me...I shiver at the thought.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Well, thanks for helping me out in there. I never really got any science." Jake chuckled while walking alongside me to my next class.

"Don't mention it. If you need help, you can always ask me. I'm here to help." I said smiling at him.

"Actually, can I borrow your notes? You made it seem a lot easier than Mr. Schubert did." he grinned.

"Yeah, no problem." I said, reaching inside my backpack and grabbing my chemistry notebook, handing it to him.

"Thank you so much. You're saving my life here, Brandon." he said, going his separate way.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

I walked into my next class, psychology, and saw Lucas wave me over to a table on the side of the room farthest from the door.

"Hey, Brandon. How are all of your classes so far?" he asked curiously.

"Pretty good actually. I met a new friend. Jake Jagelski. You know him?" I asked, opening my backpack to search for something to write with.

"Jake? Yeah, he's pretty cool. I mean, I only met him a few times. In fact, he's in our 7th period." he mentioned, smirking at me, "Acutally...a lot of our class is. There's only two english classes our for our grade." This made me smile, knowing that I would see all my new friends by the end of the day.

"Hey, Brandon." Peyton greeted. "Mind if I sit next to you?" she asked, giving me a knowing look after glancing over at Lucas. She sat in the seat before I could answer.

"Hey Peyton...umm...go right ahead." I chuckled.

"Alright class, everybody pull their chairs into a circle. We're going to be getting to know each other a little bit more." the teacher, Mrs. Hardesty said with a smile on her face, her red hair brushing over her eyes. We all pulled our seats in, Lucas on my left, Peyton to my right. "Okay, I'm going to pass around a basket of candy. Just pick your favorite one. Don't eat them yet, though. We'll get to that later." As the basket came around, Peyton grabbed a green candy, I got a pink one, and Lucas got a blue.

"Okay, everybody got one? Alright. Now, you're going to share something about yourself according to what color of candy you have chosen. Purple is something weird, blue is something sad, red is something about a relationship, green is something you hate about yourself, and pink is somebody you like. Now, I'm trained in knowing when somebody lies, so please don't. This is an open classroom, nobody is here to judge. Now, let's get started. Edwin?" As the first guy shared something about his girlfriend, I nudged Peyton in the ribs.

"Ow!" she exclaimed softly. "What?"

"Switch with me." I whispered softly so that only Peyton could hear it. She gave me an annoyed look in response. "Please. I can't be open about this. I need to switch candies with you?"

"Ok, ok. Don't be so fucking frantic. Here." she teased, handing me her green candy while I gave her my pink one in response.

"Thanks," I muttered. She just smiled softly and turned her attention toward the student speaking at the moment. It was Peyton's turn.

"Umm...jeez...I've always thought Johnny Depp was hot." she said, making the class grin and chuckle. "I mean, what else can I say? I already have a boyfriend."

"Alright, next. Mr...Wooldridge." Mrs. Hardesty said, looking down her sheet of attendance.

"Umm...I hate that I'm not who my parents wanted me to be." I said, instantly hating myself for letting it slip out like that. It got the attention of everybody in the class. It was the most open response so far.

"If you don't mind me asking, Brandon, why do you think that you're not who your parents want you to be?" Mrs. Hardesty asked attentively as the rest of the class looked on.

"Well...because they kicked me out, which is kind of why I moved here." I said, looking down at my feet.

"Oh, why is that?" she continued, egging me to share my emotions with an entire classroom of strangers. I could feel Peyton's hand on my leg, telling me that it was ok.

"I guess I just wasn't what they expected." I said, emphasizing that I wasn't willing to share anymore. I looked over at Lucas, who just gave me a look of sympathy.

"Thank you, Brandon. It takes a lot for you to share something like that. Okay, Lucas. It's your turn." she said, smirking at my neighbor.

"Okay...umm...something sad, right?" he asked, getting a nod from the teacher, "I feel that my uncle, Keith, is more of a father to me than my own biological one." Everybody nodded in response, knowing all too well the story of the Scott brothers. I gave Lucas a small, consoling smile, which was returned with a sad grin.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Oh, I'll see you later, Brandon." Peyton said, waving while walking toward a table that included Brooke, Bevin, and that Smith guy.

"So...lunch now...where are we going to sit?" I asked, glancing over at Lucas.

"Umm...me and Haley usually sit over there." he said, pointing over at a table near the window. "I'm not sure if you buy lunch or not, but I'm hungry." he said, grinning while making his way toward the line for lunch.

"Oh, alright. Well, I'll just meet you at the table then. I think I see Haley." I said, glancing over at Haley and some other guy. On my way there, I notice it's not just any other guy. It's Nathan. He notices me and gives me an annoyed look.

"Hey, get lost, loser." he exclaimed, making Haley turn around.

"Oh...God...umm...you have to go, Nathan." she said, facing Nathan again, who only gave her a confused look. "Now, Nathan." she said a bit more forcefully. He pushed out his chair in a huff and walked past me, not before he ran his shoulder into mine, knocking me back a couple of inches.

"Ok...umm...what the fuck, Haley? Why are you even talking to that douche?" I asked, still enraged by Nathan's attitude.

"Look, I'm just tutoring him. It's no big deal, okay? Just drop it." she said as I sat down beside her.

"Haley, come on. You know this could hurt Lucas if he finds out. I think you should at least tell him." I glanced over at Lucas, who was still grabbing his lunch, completely unaware of what had just happened.

"Brandon, there's nothing to tell him! It's what I do. I tutor people! I help students who don't understand what they're doing. Nathan just happens to be one of them." she said, trying to persuade me to see things her way.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to butt in." I apologized.

"Then, just don't...Brandon. I've known Lucas for a really long time and I know that if he knew what I was doing, Lucas would be so hurt." she said, emphasizing the pain it would cause him.

"But, don't you think it would be better for him to find out from you than somebody who--"

"He's not going to find out, Brandon. I'm only tutoring him in places where we won't see anybody." she said, making me recall the note on her hand.

"But Haley---" I started, then noticing Lucas walk our way with his tray of food. "Just...think about what I said, okay?"

"Hey, Hales. How was anatomy?" Lucas asked while setting his tray down onto the table. She nodded in my direction and greeted Lucas.

"Well, you know. Dissecting dead cats isn't exactly ideal, but I'll just have to suffice." she said, turning on her sarcastic personality like all it took was the flip of a switch. Lucas glanced down at his lunch and looked somewhat queasy.

"...Either of you want my 'Pasta Surprise?' " he asked, pushing his tray away from him.

"Hell, yes." Haley exclaimed, dragging the tray in front of her, taking a bite of the pasta. "Cat meat or not, this is effing delicious." she said while scarfing down a couple more bites.

I looked around the cafeteria thoughtlessly, when I saw Jake sitting by himself, talking on his cell phone. He saw me gazing over at him, so I quickly waved him over with a smile on my face. He quickly said his goodbyes to whoever it was he was speaking to and came over.

"Hey Brandon. Lucas. Haley." he greeted, counting off everybody at the table. We all greeted him warmly and asked him to sit down with us.

"Wow, student and business man?" I joked while sipping some soda that Haley brought from home.

"...What?" he asked, confused. I pointed at his phone. "Oh, that. No...umm...my Mom is taking care of my...niece and she just wanted to ask when I would get home to help her out."

"Oh. Too bad. I was hoping maybe we could all go out for pizza or something later." I said, handing Haley back her can of cola.

"Oh, well. I can try to make it, but I can't really promise anything." he said, making me smile somewhat.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

The whole day passed by rather quickly. Nothing interesting really happened in my history or photography classes. Although, the photography class was a definite liking of mine. I've always loved taking pictures, and I've always had kind of a natural talent for it.

Anyways, it was now 7th period. Lucas, Haley, Jake, and I all sat at a table while everybody was in a similar fashion in the sense that they were all with their usual clicks. Peyton, Brooke, Nathan, and Tim were all sitting at one table. Everybody at that table, other than Peyton, was glancing in our tables' direction, snickering. We brushed it off and ended up having a pretty fun time. Everybody laughed at Tim when he had spelled organism 'wrong' on a paper he turned in last week. The teacher was pretty cool, too. Mr. Walsh. He was in his late 20's, so he was a bit more easier to relate to than any of the other teachers at the school. He was funny, too. All he had to do was mention the word that was spelled wrong, and everybody already knew that Tim had done it. All in all, my first day at Tree Hill High was a lot better than I would have expected.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Hey, Kay. I just wanted to call you and say that I won't be home for dinner. Some friends and I are going to go out for pizza. I'll see you when I get home, okay? Bye." I said to my aunt's voicemail, flipping my cell phone shut while in Lucas' car with him and Haley. Haley was blasting the radio while Lucas concentrated on the road. We were headed for Haley's house, which was about ten blocks from me and Lucas'.

"So, why your house? Are our houses not worthy for the presence of a James?" I teased, getting an amused look from Haley in the passenger seat.

"Of course. You common folk have no red carpet laid out for my graceful feet to walk upon." she teased back, making me and Lucas smirk. "We're going to hang out for a bit and drop off my project. I don't want to lug around that...that super-sized monstrosity when we're out for pizza." she said, gesturing toward her project that sat next to me in the backseat of Lucas' car.

"Oh, come on. You got a 'B' It's not the end of the world." I said reassuringly but was only met with silence from the two other people. "...what?" I asked, confused.

"Haley is pretty anal about her grades being nothing less than an A-." Lucas teased, his eyes still fixated on the street we were driving on.

"I'm not...anal about it...I'm just...consistent with grades and I take it out on myself when that consistency ends. That's all." she said calmly, making my eyes roll.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Wow, this place is great. What's it called again?" I asked as I gazed excitedly around the restaurant. It was decorated with wood-top tables and counters with a bar/lounge feel to it.

"Aladino's. Best pizza in the tri-county area. But also, it's one of four of the only pizza places in the tri-county area." Haley said, walking up to the counter. "Hi, there. Two small pizzas, one pepperoni, the other sausage. And two pitchers of drinks. Hmm...make them a root beer and a cola." she told the cashier rather quickly. She turned back at us and said jokingly, "Now what do you guys want?" which made me and Lucas crack up.

Damn. Haley knew what she wanted when it came to food. As soon as it arrived, she grabbed her slices and started digging in. Lucas and I just stared in wonder at how such a tiny person could eat so damn much. I grabbed a slice of sausage and took a bite. Best damn pizza I've ever had, hands down. I looked down at my cell phone. 7:30. I was hoping maybe Jake would call me to say he was on his way, but my phone didn't buzz once.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

Lucas dropped Haley back off at her house around eight. We drove back to the house while discussing different kinds of music. Turns out, we listen to a lot of the same stuff.

"Oh, I think I have a CD of them in here." he said, reaching over to the glove box in front of me. While searching for it, his forearm kept brushing up against my thigh, making my heart skip a beat. I looked over at Lucas. He was completely unaware of it. I could see his strong features flashing before me as streetlight after streetlight illuminated his face. "Ah, here it is." he said, grabbing a disc at the bottom of the compartment. I quickly averted my gaze back to the road in front of us as he popped in a Jimmy Eat World CD. '_Sweetness'_ was the first song to play.

_ Are you listening?_

_ Whoa..._

_ Sing it back_

_ Whoa..._

_ So tell me, what do I need?_

_ Whoa, whoa_

_ When words lose their meaning?_

_ Whoa, whoa_

_I was spinning free_

_ Whoa..._

_ With a little sweet and simple numbing me_

_ Stumble 'til you crawl_

_ Whoa..._

_Sinking into sweet uncertainty_

"Yeah, no. I love this song." I said, focusing more on the music than on the lingering heat from his touch leaving its trace on top of my thigh.

We pulled into his driveway at that moment. I grabbed my bag out from the backseat and exited the car, our door slams echoed across the neighborhood.

"Alright. Thanks for everything, Luke. See you tomorrow morning." I said, waving at him.

"Oh, no problem. See ya." he said gloomily while making his way toward the front of his house.

"Oh, and Luke?" I called, making him turn around. "Try and get some sleep tonight, man." I mentioned. He smiled at me and once again, headed toward his house.

"Actually, can I talk to you about something?" he asked sheepishly.

"Yeah, of course. What's up?" I asked, concerned. I walked in his direction so that he wouldn't have to yell whatever it was to the entire neighborhood.

"Well, the basketball coach, Whitey, asked me if I wanted to join the team. Apparently, my Uncle Keith drove him to the River Court when we were playing yesterday." Lucas started, starting to sit on the curb, me following in his actions. "I mean, despite our little trip-up, he thinks I have what it takes to get on the team. The thing is, I'm not sure how I feel about that. I mean, it'd be great to play on a real team and all, but...I'm not sure how my Mom would feel." he said, gesturing toward his house where you could see the silhouette of Karen in the window covered by cream colored curtains.

"Well, first off, congrats." I said, making him grin widely. "Second, I think you should tell your Mom about this. Maybe see how she feels about it before making assumptions. Maybe she'd be happy for you, ya know?" I said reassuringly. It was so sweet how he put his Mom's happiness before his own.

"Eh...I'm not sure she will, Brandon. I think it'll remind her too much of Dan." he said, hatred engulfing his voice just by saying his name.

"Right...he played basketball. Forgot about that. Well, even so. I'm not saying base your decision off of what she thinks. I think you should do what you feel like. I mean, this could impact your future enormously, and a decision like that calls for some selfishness." I said, hoping he'd take my advice and do what was best for him and not worry about how his mother would react.

"Thanks. That helps a lot." he thanked, sitting up from the curb, giving me a thankful smile.

"It's what I'm here for...let me know what decision you make, okay Luke?" I asked, hoping that it wouldn't freak him out that I wanted to know what he would do.

"Of course. After all, that's what you're here for, right?" he said, grinning widely as he walked away toward his house, making me blush profusely.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Hey, Brandon. Have fun?" my Aunt Kaylin greeted, obviously exhausted from a long day's work. She was wearing a deep blue tank top with baby blue plaid pajama bottoms underneath a fluffy, white robe.

"Yeah, it was fun. Great food. How was work?" I said distractedly, still going over my conversation with Lucas.

"Ugh," she groaned, "exhausting...as per usual, I guess. I'm actually heading to bed early." she yawned, causing me to yawn. "Hmm...maybe you should, too." she chuckled.

"Hey, it's not my fault. You know that it's absolutely contagious." I joked.

"Well, it's fun to cause a bunch of yawning chaos in a crowded room, but not as fun annoying you by yawning." she teased, going into her room. "Good night, Brandon." she called out from her room before shutting her door.

"Night." I muttered, knowing nobody would hear me. I locked up the front door behind me and headed for my room when there was a knock on the door.

"Oh, god. That better not be Rick." I exclaimed jokingly, sluggishly making my way back to the front door, opening it.

"Hey, Brandon."

"Jake? What are you doing here." I asked sounding surprised as hell to see him standing at my front door.

"Um...Peyton told me you lived here. I came to drop off this." he said, handing me my chemistry notebook. "And I also came to apologize for not being able to make it." he said, looking apologetic.

"Oh, don't even worry about it Jake. You had to take care of your niece, I completely understand." I said, reassuring him that it truly was okay.

"Umm...about that...do you think you could come with me for a little bit?" he asked sheepishly.

"Uh...sure...? Let me just slip out of my room so I can lock up here. I'll meet you around the side, okay?" I said. He nodded and I made my way to my room dropping off my notebook on my desk and opened the side door. "Alright, let's go."

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Here we are." Jake said, pulling into a driveway. "My house." I looked at him quizzically.

"Umm...why'd you take me here?" I asked with a confused expression plastered upon my face.

"I just...I need to tell somebody. I hated lying to you...umm...guys, today." he said, looking disappointed in his actions.

"What...what do you mean? What'd you lie about Jake?" I asked, both concerned and scared of what he might be hiding.

"Just come inside. Please?" he said, his eyes pleading.

"Yeah, of course. Come on." I said, undoing my seatbelt and getting out of his car. He unlocked the front door to his house and led me up the stairs. He opened the door to a girl's nursery.

"What's your niece have to do with this?" I asked, still puzzled by the scene before me.

"Umm...yeah...this isn't my niece." he started, getting the baby girl out of her crib. Her doe-like eyes gazing up Jake and questioningly looking over at me. "She's my daughter...Jenny." he announced.

"O...k...jeez, Jake. You scared the sh..." I started, swiftly stopping myself from cussing in front of the infant. "You scared me there, Jake." I said calmly.

"Aren't you...creeped out? I'm in high school and I have a baby girl." he said, looking at me in disbelief.

"Jake...this doesn't make me look at you any differently, if that's what you were expecting. I mean, sure, it's usually the mother that has the kid live with her, but that's the only thing that I find strange here."

"Umm...yeah...her mom, Nikki, didn't really want her. So, I'm taking care of her. I mean, my family and I are."

"I'm sorry, Jake. That must be hard." I said sympathetically, hoping that he really does believe that I'm not freaked out by it.

"Sometimes. But, this little treasure," he started, looking down at his daughter, "makes it all worth it." That made me grin widely. You could tell that he loved his daughter very much. Much more than anybody I've ever seen with their kids.

He set her back down into her crib and crossed his arms, still tense about his announcement.

"Jake, I said, walking over to him, both hands rubbing his arms reassuringly, "I'm not freaked. I promisde you." I said, smiling genuinely.

"Are you sure? I mean you might still be in shock or--" he started frantically, trying to find an excuse for my acceptance.

"Jake, I chuckled, "the only shocked person in here is you. I mean, I wasn't expecting it, but I'm not bothered by it. Now, come on. Calm down." he nodded, and looked down at Jenny, as did I. She looked up at me, and smiled.

"You know, I think she likes you." he said. I looked back at him, smiling sweetly.

"Yeah?" he nodded in response. "Well, that's good, because I like her, too." I said, now smiling down at his child.

"Come on, I'll take you home." he offered.

"Goodbye, Jenny. I'll miss you." I said in baby talk, making the little infant burst into a fit of giggles. We exited the room and Jake flicked off the light switch on the way out.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Alright, Jake. I'll see you tomorrow." I said, starting to exit out of his car.

"Wait," he commanded softly. "I just...wanted to thank you for your acceptance. It really means a lot more than you think." he said sheepishly, slightly blushing, but his mouth was turned up into a small smile.

"Again, it didn't take much. You shouldn't be so scared of what people will think, Jake. Your true friends will always stand by your side no matter what." I said, smiling sweetly at him. "And wow...that sounded A LOT less corny in my head." I joked, making him laugh.

"Just...do me a favor? Don't tell anybody about Jenny. I'm not ready to come out as a teenage father just yet." he asked.

"Yeah, no problem. But when you are ready for that, come find me. I'll help you out." I said, leaving his car and closing the door behind me.

Now that it was almost 10, I was officially exhausted. I came in through my side door and flicked on my lights, limblessly falling onto my bed, face first. I was close to getting to sleep when there was a knock on my door, my side door. I stood up in disbelief and went to my door.

"Hey Brandon. I didn't wake you, did I? I just saw that your lights were on and figured--" he said, wincing at how sleepy I looked.

"No, I wasn't, but a couple more minutes and you would have." I said stonily while yawning. "What's up?"

"So, my Mom said that she'd let me be on the team." he said, his face lighting up when he said it, making me smile uncontrollably.

"That's great, Luke. You'll finally be playing with the big boys rather than just some worn-out newbie." I joked, getting us to both chuckle at yesterday's events.

"Yeah, but that will also mean playing alongside Nathan...am I really ready for that?" he asked himself.

"Well, I think you are. I know that you'll be able to set aside whatever hatred you have toward him and play amazingly." I said reassuringly.

"Yeah...maybe. Thanks Brandon. I'll see you tomorrow." he said, waving and walking down the steps from my porch.

I closed the door and smiled happily for Lucas. I turned my lights off and grabbed some pajamas. I fell asleep almost instantaneously after my head hit my pillow.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

**So? What'd you guys think? Leave a review and let me know. This should be updated by Wednesday. If not, definitely by the weekend. Alright, later guys. DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!!!**


	4. No One Sleeps When I'm Awake

**Hey guys, I just got through with a report for my Economics class, so I thought it was perfect time to let out some ideas into another chapter. I'm telling you guys...this is all planned out...I have so many great ideas, I'm so proud lol. Maybe it's just because I love One Tree Hill more than any other drama. I honestly don't know.**

**PAIRINGS: A lot of Haley/Nathan, Peyton/Nathan and Brandon/Jake (friendship) with small parts of Lucas/Brandon (friendship...sorta...) maybe I'll even throw in some Peyton/Brandon (also friendship)**

**Chapter: This takes place early season 1. It'll contain events from episode 4. We'll actually have Peyton mourn her mother in this chapter rather than the next, but differently.**

**Anyways, here it is!**

By the way, I apologize for the lack of sequence separations. This site is weird and it wouldn't let me do a one-liner used any characters. So instead, when you see **One Tree Hill** in bold, that means it's a new scene.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

God, I can't believe it's been a three weeks already. Everything just seemed to fly by with my new friends. We were a tight group. We were always with each other during school. It was Lucas, Jake, Haley, and I. Peyton, of course, had her own friends, not that I was bothered by that. I mean, it's not like she denied that I was her friend. We still hung out in Psychology and we had one more family dinner yesterday. Brooke was becoming more a part of my day, too. She sat next to me in Chemistry, whispering something completely random in my ear. It wasn't flirty, either. It was more friendly than anything. But who knows, maybe that's just her cover. Or maybe she even found a new target. I mean, I heard Lucas say something about her being naked in the backseat of his car...yeah, I know. I couldn't believe it, either.

When Lucas and Jake are at practice, Haley and I usually keep each other company. Whether it's just hanging out, or me helping out at Karen's Cafe. Actually, I finally met Karen. She was super nice, yet sarcastic. Kind of like Haley, except...not...I guess...

Anyways, today was a night of basketball practice for the other boys, so I decided to see if Haley wanted to do something.

"Hey, Haley!" I greeted, walking through the front door of the restaurant. "I was thinking movie night for...tonight..." I began, but then noticing the raven-haired Scott brother in the booth where Haley was sitting. Papers and books were laid out all over the wooden table.

"Umm...sure..." she said distractedly while writing something down on a paper and then smiling. "Great job, Nathan. Eighty-three percent!" She handed the paper back to Nathan, who smirked widely.

"Damn, James. You do know how to tutor. I mean, if you can tutor me, then you can tutor anybody!" Nathan exclaimed in excitement.

"Yup, she's a miracle worker, that one." I added, getting a glare from both Haley and Nathan.

"Hey, fuck you, Wooldridge!" Nathan spat with ferociousness.

"Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll pass." I said, smirking at my own verbal victory.

Haley sighed heavily from being frustrated with both of our attitudes toward each other, but she didn't respond to our spat. "Anyways, I better see something over than an eighty-three percent from you on Monday." she said, pushing him to strive.

"Yeah..." he said, still glaring over at me while I sat down at the counter. "Thanks, Haley." Nathan got up, grabbed his backpack, and left the diner angrily.

"What the hell is the matter with you?!" Haley exclaimed in anger. "You barely know him and yet you...you attack him." she said, now walking over toward me, fire in her eyes.

I sighed, feeling like a douche. Haley always seemed to be able to do that. "Look, I'm sorry. It's just...what if Lucas had walked in? Don't you think you grading his homework, giving him practice tests, would have been a tiny bit suspicious?" I said, making sure she realized the risk.

"No, he's working at Keith's shop this morning. You know I wouldn't risk doing it here if I didn't know that he wouldn't be here." she said, sounding slightly defeated, yet still confident in what she knew.

"Alright, I'm sorry. Let's get ready for school." I said, pulling my backpack from off of my left shoulder, zipping it open. "Here's that report you wanted me to print out for you." I said while pulling out a cobalt-colored folder, handing it to Haley.

"Oh, right. Thanks. So, what do you think?" she asked, opening up the folder to take her papers out.

"Way better than I could ever do. I'm sure you'll get an A plus." I smiled, making her grin. "Now, you know the deal. You owe me." I said, pulling out a camera bag from inside of my backpack.

"Oh, Lord...alright. Snap away, Mr. Photography Man." she groaned.

"Oh, don't complain. It's just something extremely simple." I started, grabbing the camera out of the bag, unscrewing the lens cap.

"Oh, yeah? What is this simple task?" she asked curiously, folding her arms against her chest.

"Just a photo of you and me doing THE MOST extremely goofy faces we can make." I smirked, pulling her into my embrace.

"Oh, is that all?" She teased, blowing up her cheeks and going cross-eyed, making me laugh. I quickly got into position and made my own face, resting my tongue on my upper lip while I stuck out my bottom lip, making it look like I had Angelina Jolie lips. I took the picture, releasing a flash of light from outside the top of the camera and we both burst into laughter.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"So, Nathan invited me to a party tonight at his parent' beach house after practice." Lucas began, running up to catch up with me in the school hallway.

I choked on my own saliva at the exact moment I heard that.

"Yeah, I had a very similar reaction." Lucas said, smirking.

"I mean...are you going?" I said, recovering from my own response. "No, stupid question. Of course you're not."

"Actually..." he started, making my jaw drop.

"You told him you'd go? What happened to hating him?" I asked in disbelief.

"Well, it's just...it seems civil. I mean, I'm not going to ruin the only chance I have at being okay with each other, you know?" he said, drifting off into his own thoughts.

"Yeah, I mean, I guess that makes sense." I added, still confused at why Nathan even invited them. I mean, just that morning, Nathan and I threw smart remark after smart remark at each other. Why would he want me there?

"So, I know I'm going to go...do you know if you are? I mean, Haley told me she got invited, too. And I'm sure Peyton will be there, also." he said, persuading me to say 'yes.'

"...Fine, I'll go. I just hope they have drinks." I said, defeated. But giving in made Lucas grin.

"Dude, it's a party hosted by a jock...if it doesn't have booze, life will end as we know it." he joked, making me chuckle. I couldn't help but still feel uneasy about this, though.

My phone buzzed, throwing me out of my own thoughts. It was Haley.

_Hey u goin 2 nates party tonight cuz I need your help with something before_

_**Sure np wat do u need hlp with**_

_Youll see just meet me at my house plz_

_**K I will**_

I flipped my phone closed, looking over at Lucas. "Hey, do you think you could give me a ride to Haley's before practice?" I asked hesitantly.

"Uhh yeah, no problem. Let me just grab my keys from my locker." he said, making his way down the hall. "Meet me at my car." he called.

I walked toward the parking lot and spotted Jake start to enter his car.

"Jake!" I called out happily. He heard me and smiled, stopping himself from entering his car. I jogged over to him.

"Hey, Bran. What's up?" he asked, grinning at my enthusiasm to talk to him.

"Hey, man. I was just wondering if you were going to Nathan's party tonight?" I asked curiously.

"Tonight? I can't, man. I got to watch Jenny after practice." he said. I mentally sighed. I thought maybe I could hang out with a guy friend that I didn't have a crush on tonight. Didn't look good for me in that sense.

"Oh...right" I replied, feeling stupid. Of course he had to take care of his daughter. "Well, it was worth a try." I smirked.

"Yeah. Well, what are you doing tomorrow? It'd be cool to hang out tomorrow before the game and all." he said, making me smirk.

"Well, yeah we could hang out." I replied, spotting Lucas out of the corner of my eye. "But hey, I got to go. I'll text you about tomorrow. Later, man." I said, walking back to Lucas' car.

"So, Jake going tonight?" Lucas asked curiously.

"Nah, he can't. ...Big project he has to do." I lied, unwilling to let Jake's secret slip.

"Oh...ok." he said, opening his car door.

"You know, it's pretty dumb to leave your car keys in your locker..." I teased, getting into the passenger seat and shutting the door.

"No one asked you." he glared jokingly, starting his car.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Thanks, Luke. Guess I'll see you tonight." I said, waving him off.

"Later. Have fun." he teased, then drove off.

"Brandon!" Haley called from her door. I laughed and made my way to her.

"Wow, a little eager, are we?" I teased, only to be pulled in harshly by my forearm.

"Ow! What the bi--"

"SSSH! My parents are in the kitchen. They can't know you're here." she said in a hushed voice, leading me up the stairs to her bedroom.

"Wait, what? Then why'd you even invite me?" I asked accusingly. Her parents don't really like it when she has boys up in her room.

"Because! I thought they would be gone for their trip by now. Now less talky, more sneaky!" she said, now rushing me down her hallway into her bedroom.

"Haley?" her mother called from around the staircase, which resulted in Haley shoving me into her bedroom, making me almost trip over myself.

"Yes, mom?" she answered, looking slightly stiff and antsy at the same time.

"We're leaving now, honey. We'll be back in two weeks." her mother said.

"Alright, have fun. Bye." Haley said, practically pushing her mother down the stairs to get to the front door.

Haley and I waited patiently to hear the front door close. When it did, we broke into a heavy laughter from how ridiculous this was.

"Now, what's so important that you had to drag me all the way out here." I asked, taking a seat on her bed.

"Ok...well...I'm just gonna go ahead and say it because if I don't, I'll totally chicken out, and I don't want to do that because you came all this way, and not only you, but Luke dropped you off. So it'd be a waste if I don't since both you and Luke came here and--" she ranted

"HALEY! Calm down and just tell me. You're making me extremely nervous here." I chuckled lightly, trying to get her to calm down long enough for her to say whatever was on her mind.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you nervous. I mean, what I'm about to tell you shouldn't make you nervous, either. It's completely--"

"HALEY!" I chuckled, "You're doing it again..."

"Right...anyways...I...I think I might like Nathan." she blurted out, closing her eyes, waiting for it to impact me.

"Umm...that's...new..." I said, still trying to soak it in. I shot straight up from the bed, finally hearing what she just said.

"Please, please, PLEASE don't be mad." she pleaded. "It's just...we've grown close over the past few weeks and...I just...God, he's so sweet and...and caring...and...I'm sorry. I'm freaking you out, aren't I? she asked sadly while taking a seat on her bed, pain in her eyes.

"No...I'm just...I...I don't know how to react to this. I mean, I know I'm not angry...it's just...it's one thing to hide from your best friend that you tutor the half-brother he's always hated, but it's completely different to keep from him that you like his half-brother, you know?" I said, now sitting next to Haley.

"Yeah, I know...God, when did life get so fucking complicated?" she exclaimed.

"Well...since we're being open and all..." I started, my palms sweating, my heart thumping in my chest. "There's something I want to tell you. And it's kind of a big something. Might even be bigger than yours. I mean, I hope I can tell you this and you won't, like, look at me any different because--"

"Brandon, now you're doing it." she said, smirking slightly.

"I'm...I'm gay..." There it was, out in the open. I cringed slightly after saying it, tensing up completely.

"Oh...well...Brandon, don't worry about it. I really don't look at you any differently. To me, it's like you just said, 'I prefer hot dogs over tacos." …..and yes, that was truly, truly unintentionally dirty," she laughed, making me chuckle. "but seriously, Brandon. It doesn't bother me. Now, come here." she said, reaching her arms out to me. I hugged her back, smiling gleefully. "God, it is so like you to steal the spotlight." Haley teased.

"I did not steal it, the spotlight is still on you. I mean, you like Nathan!" I said jokingly.

"Well, you like hot, sweaty, man sex..." she said, grinning widely. I instantly felt defeated, but in a good way. It was finally out there to some one in my circle...well...square...of friends.

"Look, you probably know this already, but you can't tell anybody. I'm not ready for that just yet." I said, looking into her eyes, making sure that she knew I meant it.

"You keep my secret, I keep yours." she smirked. "Now, come on. We got a party to get ready for." Haley jumped from her seat on the bed and went to her closet. "Hat or no hat?" she asked, pulling out a green knit cap from the top of her closet.

"Hat, definitely." I said, grinning at how comfortable with it she was. Nothing felt different. It was great.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Wow...this place is...huge..." I said, looking amazed at the structure before me.

"Yeah, well, it's Dan's. What did you expect. Simple?" Lucas said while me and Haley got out of his car. I could hear the rumbling of music coming from the house.

"Hey, man. Glad you could make it." Nathan greeted, plastic cup in hand and girlfriend in tow. "Hey. I'm Nathan, nice to meet you guys." he greeted, looking behind Lucas at me and Haley. We went along with it and introduced ourselves.

"Alright guys, let's head on in." Nathan said, leading us to the front door of the huge house. He opened it and you could instantly hear the chatter of conversation with the toss-in of drunken laughter. "Booze is in the kitchen, but the keg is in the living room. Help yourself." he said, walking off to join the rest of the party.

"Well, where should we start first?" Lucas asked, bewildered by what to do next.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm finding that keg." I chuckled and went off into the direction that Nathan had pointed to earlier. There it was, smack dab in the middle of the next room. I grabbed a navy plastic cup and helped myself to a full glass of beer, no foam. I took a sip and looked around the room. Not many people I knew were really here. But then I saw Peyton and headed in her direction.

"Hey, Peyton. Your boyfriend sure knows how to throw a party. Seems like the entire school is here." I said, taking a quick sip from my cup.

"Yeah, he truly does. I mean, it's the anniversary of my mother's death, but hey, this party is way more important, right?" she said, taking a swift shot of vodka.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry Peyton.." I said, trying to console her.

"You know how he brought this up? He asked me to come here today because he had a surprise for me. I thought that maybe, just maybe, he remembered and planned some sort of surprise to help cheer me up. But lucky me, the surprise was a big beer fest." she said, downing another shot of vodka. "God, I'm so stupid." she said, blankly staring into her shot glass while sitting lazily on a bar stool.

"Peyton, you're not stupid, ok? You just have a really shitty boyfriend. I mean, he treats you like crap. Maybe you should break up...for good." I said, taking the bottle of vodka away from her.

"Maybe..." she said, now sitting up.

"Are you ok? We can leave the party if you want to." I asked sweetly.

"No...I think I'm just going to try to sleep upstairs. Hopefully, I can drown out all this noise." she said rather stonily, walking sluggishly toward the staircase.

"Are you sure?" I asked, still following her.

"Yeah. I just...I think I need to be by myself right now, you know?" she said, still walking up the stairs. I nodded in understanding and headed for the kitchen.

There, I saw Jake looking rather lost in the sea of drunken classmates. I made my way toward him. He saw me and grinned widely.

"Hey, Jake. I can't believe you made it." I exclaimed, smiling at him.

"Yeah, I got my Dad to watch her for a couple of hours." he explained.

"Oh, look at that. You're hand is empty. Let's get you a beer." I said, leading him to the keg and grabbing him a drink.

"Thanks, but make sure I don't drink any more than this, okay? I still have to drive home and I'm a little bit of a lightweight." he said, sipping his beer.

"Sure, no problem." I said, patting him on the back. "Oh, look. Drinking game." I could see Nathan and his friends along with Haley and Peyton, who didn't want to be alone after all. Everybody was holding a drink.

"You take this one, I'm gonna try and find a bathroom in this...maze of a beach house." he said, making me chuckle, before walking off into the crowd.

"Hey, Brandon. Come play." Haley called from the table.

"Sounds good. What are we playing?" I asked before leaning against the doorway.

"'I Never.'" Peyton mentioned.

"Hey, what happened to wanting to be alone." I whispered to Peyton, puzzled by her actions.

"Why be alone when you can get even?" she smirked before the game started.

"Ok, I'll start." Brooke exclaimed. "I never...oh, wait. I did that!" she said making me and the rest of the group chuckle.

"Alright, my turn." Haley said. "I've never...gotten less than a 'C' on a test." To that, everybody but Haley drank. She quickly realized this wasn't the crowd to say that with.

"Alright. I'll go." Peyton started, looking somewhat devious. "I've never made my girlfriend feel like crap on the anniversary of her mother's death." she said, looking Nathan right in the eye, who looked completely thrown off by what Peyton had said. "Drink up, Nate." she said, hatred dripping off of every word. He obliged and continued the game.

"I've never..." he began, then glancing over at me with an evil glint in his eyes. "gotten kicked out of my parents' house for being queer." My heart stopped, murmuring could be heard around the entire room. "That beer isn't going to drink itself, Brandon." he smirked. I started to blindly leave the house, only to be pulled back by Peyton.

"Brandon, plea--" she started.

"No, Peyton! I thought I could trust you with it! And here I am, realizing that it's obviously not true...and that it never was..." I said bitterly, my nostrils flaring with anger.

"No, I didn't know he would do that!" she exclaimed frantically, tears in her eyes.

"Do you really think that matter?! God, Peyton, how could you—I don't understand how--" I was at a loss for words at how badly she had hurt me. I thought that she was trustworthy, but she isn't.

"Brandon, no. I—I--" she started frantically, tears now flowing freely down her cheeks.

"Just...stay the fuck away from me." I said ferociously before exiting the house.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

I called for a taxi, but it seemed to be taking forever to get here. I was still so angry. My fists were still trembling, my nostrils still flaring. I heard footsteps behind me. It must be Peyton.

"Look, Peyton. I told you to just stay—Jake." I started but quickly calming down realizing it was my friend's footsteps I heard.

"Hey. Haley told me that you were out here. How come you are?" Jake asked curiously. "The party is back inside, you know." he joked, making me grin slightly.

"Yeah, some party. Wait...you really don't know why I'm out here?" He shook his head.

"Why, what's wrong?" he asked concerned. He tensed up a little bit.

"Just...drama that I really don't want." I said, keeping him from knowing the entire truth.

"Oh. Guess that makes sense. So, you want a ride home or are you going to stay here and wait for the drama to rest?" he offered, gesturing back to the noise that awaited inside the house.

"Could you maybe take me--"

"Brandon, there you are!" Haley said. "I told Jake you were out here but I didn't think you were so far out here." she joked. Lucas followed behind her.

"Hey, Haley. Hey, Luke." I said, still rather shaken by everything.

"You want to go home? Maybe we can still have that movie night." Haley suggested, putting her arm around my shoulder.

"Yeah, sure." I said, starting for Lucas' car. "Oh, hey. Jake, you want to come with? Cheesy horror movies await us." I offered, not wanting to leave him out.

"Umm...sure, sounds great. Just...remind me to leave at around midnight, ok?" I nodded.

"What, does your car turn into a pumpkin by then?" Haley joked, making everybody laugh.

"Alright. So whose car are we taking?" I asked, remembering that both Jake and Lucas' car were here.

"Oh, right. Well, how about you and Lucas take his truck and go rent a couple of movies and Jake and I will go buy some snacks." Haley suggested, pulling out a wallet filled with cash.

"Whoa, Haley. Not only is that a lot of cash, but it's also very...butch of you to carry such a manly wallet." I teased, giving her a puzzled look.

"This isn't mine, doofus." she said, a devilish gleam in her eye, "It's Nathan's."

"Oh? Well, Brandon and I are happy to oblige." Lucas stated, putting his arm around me and pulling me closer into him. I could smell is sweet cologne, making my nose tickle slightly. God, and he's so warm! How is that possible? It must be a good fifty-two degrees out here.

"Wait, why are you two happy?" Jake said, slightly confused.

"Because, Jake, he's the source of both of their daily dose of teen soap drama." Haley said, still waving the wallet in her hand, handing half of it's confines to me, and keeping the rest to herself.

"Wait, both?" I asked.

"Yeah. I'll tell you in the car." he chuckled, his arm still around my frame, leading me to his car.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"So, he just showed that video to everybody there?" I asked, shocked at the past events that I missed.

"Yup. But I got to shove him into a wall. That was kind of fun." he mentioned, making us both laugh.

"So, what are we watching tonight? We have to go all out and get enough for the entire night." I said, looking in the new release section.

"Ok, but we need classics horror flops, not new ones." Lucas said, dragging me from the rack.

"Hmm...how about 'Killer Klowns From Outer Space.'" Lucas suggested, grabbing it off the rack. It was more of a statement than a question because he knew that I would totally go for it.

"Oooh...hope I don't get nightmares." I said, flinching at the memory of the nightmares I was having a few weeks ago.

He chuckled. "Look at this. 'Nail Gun Massacre.' We gotta get it."

"No arguments here." I said, putting up my hands defensively in a joking manner. But then, I saw it. Probably the worst idea for a horror movie ever made. I mean, I've never seen it, but I mean the title said it all.

"Luke." I started, stopping him from going any further. "Stop and read to me what that says." I commanded, pointing at the rack.

"Umm...'Movies D though F.'" he grinned. I gave him a sarcastic look.

"Wow, thanks, I never would have been able to read that. I meant what's ABOVE the sign." I pointed, he burst out laughing when he saw it.

"Oh, God. We so have to get that one." he said, still laughing. I grabbed the movie and we headed for the counter. We rented the movies and were out the door.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Hmm...doesn't look like their here yet." I stated as we pulled into Lucas' driveway.

"Guess not. Well, we could just hang until they get here." he suggested, getting out of his car while grabbbing the bag of movies.

"Sounds good." I exclaimed, shutting the car door.

"So, where's your aunt at?" he asked curiously.

"Probably inside sleeping." I said, starting to turn the lock to the front door. "But don't worry, she sleeps with earplugs." I mentioned.

"How does she get up in the morning?" Lucas asked, looking somewhat puzzled by the idea.

"Her cell phone's alarm is on vibrate on her bed, so she'll feel it. She always does." I said, opening the door and flicking on the lights. As soon as I said that, Haley and Jake pulled up in front of the house, exiting with bags upon bags of junk food.

"Jeez, Haley. Overboard, much?" I teased while grabbing three of the five bags Jake was carrying while Lucas grabbed two of the three Haley had. Jake looked at me gratefully and I pointed them all to the living room.

"It's not my money I went overboard with..." she said with a smirk across her face, causing us all to do the same. "So, we might have went overboard with the food, but what about you guys? What films containing horrible acting and cleavage to cover up the plot are we watching tonight?" she said, opening up a bag of Doritos.

"Well, let's see." I began, pulling out the movies from the bag one by one. "'Nail Gun Massacre,' 'Killer Klowns from Outer Space.'" That one made Jake chuckle. " And, the mother of all horrible horror movies, 'Frankenhooker!'" Both Haley and Jake burst into hysterical laughter while Lucas and I both grinned widely at their reaction.

"Alright, alright. Let's leave that one for last. Right now, I want me some clown action." Haley joked, flopping down in the armchair.

"You mean you want some 'klown' action." I corrected, nobody realizing what it meant.

"I don't get it...I thought she just said that." Jake said, gesturing toward Haley who nodded in response.

"Nope, she said 'clown' with a 'c.' This little treasure spells clowns with a 'k.'"

"Oh, god. That's so cheesy." Haley exclaimed, smirking. "It's perfect." she said, popping a chip into her mouth. "Pop it in, maestro!"

"Okay, okay." I said defensively while putting in the movie. I noticed Lucas had sat on the couch while Jake grabbed a chair from the kitchen and brought it to sit over on the opposite end of the couch. I sat next to Lucas on the loveseat, blushing exceptionally. Luckily, nobody noticed. Sitting next to him was great. I could feel his body heat pulsating against my skin, his presence enrapturing me with bliss. We all watched the movie in peace, cotton candy cacoons and all.

"Alright, I'll put in that other one." Lucas said, getting up from the couch to grab the movie, bending over to put the movie in. I couldn't help but stare at the sight before me, thinking suggestive thoughts. He turned around and I quickly averted my gaze to the Snickers bar I was now consuming. He sat back down, a tiny bit closer than last time. Our sides brushed together, making my heart rate rise.

"Alright guys, I gotta go. It's midnight" Jake said, getting up from his chair.

"Oh, I'll walk you out." I exclaimed, hoping to talk to him before he left. We both walked to the door and he opened it to walk outside. "Hey, say 'hi' to Jenny for me." I whispered, making him smile.

"I'll be sure to do that. Oh, and Brandon. Haley told me about tonight." The color washed away from my face, which Jake seemed to notice. "No, not all of it. Just...enough. She didn't tell me what was said by that...jackass." he said, making me feel instantly relieved. "I just wanted to say not to worry about it. Everybody was too drunk to remember, anyways."

"You think?" I asked sheepishly, rubbing the back of my head.

"Yeah, don't worry about it." he said consolingly, patting my shoulder. "We still on for tomorrow?"

"Yeah, definitely. Call me whenever you wake up because God know I won't get much sleep with these two around." I joked.

"Yeah," he chuckled. "No problem. Later, man." he said before leaving.

Yeah. Later." I said to myself before closing the front door. I walked back to the living room. "Alright guys, let's get our massacre on!" I said, making them both face me. Haley looked at me and mouthed, 'stay awake.' I discreetly nodded and sat back down on the couch.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

It was now 2:30 in the morning. It got harder and harder not to fall asleep. I looked over at Lucas, who was already fast asleep, his palm cradling his head on the arm of the couch. He was lightly snoring, which I found so incredibly adorable. I looked over at Haley, who was still so intrigued at the lameness that was, 'Frankenhooker.'

"Haley." I whispered. She didn't even respond. Instead, she took a sip of juice and set it back down onto the coffee table. "Haley!" I whispered louder. Still nothing. Well, I had no choice now. I launched a throw pillow at her, hitting her square in the face. She pulled it down frantically and gave me an evil glare.

"Why would you do that?" she whispered harshly, throwing the pillow back at me.

"You didn't hear me!" I mentioned.

"Oh..." she whispered defeatedly. "Alright, follow me." she commanded, getting up from her seat.

"What, where to?" I asked, puzzled.

"Just to your room." she said, "which is...where, exactly?"

"Jeez Haley, kind of desperate to be hitting on a gay guy, aren't you?" I teased, getting a forceful punch to the shoulder in response, which was actually meant to be playful. "Ow!"

"Ok, now where is it?" she asked, I pointed to the door of my room, rubbing my shoulder. She opened the door, letting us in, and closed it softly behind us.

"Okay, so what's going on?" I asked.

"What's going on is that you like Lucas." she exclaimed with a small smirk on her face.

"What? That's—that's cra—ok, fine. But I can't help it." I said, taking a seat in my computer chair.

"I didn't come here to tease you about it." she began, sitting down on my bed. "I just... want you to be careful. I mean, I've known Lucas for a long time, now, and I honestly don't think he likes guys." she said, giving me a sympathetic look.

"I know that. I promise that it's just a crush. I'm sure it'll go away soon enough." I said. I don't know who I was trying to convince, me or her.

"Alright." she said. "Ugh." she groaned, flopping her upper body down onto my mattress. "I'm so exhausted." she said. I got up and did the same.

"Yeah, it's been a pretty long day." I agreed. "I could just fall asleep right here and now."

"Well, I have no problem with that. You know, as long as you don't feel me up in my sleep or anything." she joked. I gave her a sarcastic look.

"No, you take the bed. I'll take the armchair out there." I gestured toward the door.

"Alright, just don't disturb me before noon." she said, already starting to snuggle up into my comforter. I chuckled and grabbed a pillow and some blankets from my closet.

"Good night, Haley." I chuckled before leaving the room. Her only response was an annoyed groan.

I made my way toward the living room and saw that Lucas was still in the same position as before. I couldn't just leave him there with no warmth, so I grabbed another blanket from the hallway closet and draped it over him.

He stirred a little. Then, he groaned out, "Peyton." My heart instantly sunk. I mean, it was no surprise that he was straight, but it still hurt to him do that. I decided to put it past me and sat comfortably in the chair opposite from Lucas. The last thing I heard was the symphonic sound of Lucas' light snoring.

****

**ONE TREE HILL**

**So, what'd you guys think? Whatever it might be, leave me a review about it.**

**And, ha! You thought that when I brought up Haley's green hat, it would be the chapter where Lucas finds out that Haley is tutoring Nathan. Well, you're wrong. I have much bigger plans for that. **

**Again, please _PLEASE REVIEW!!!_** **I would really love to hear some feedback. Even if it's only a one-syllable response, I won't mind. ^_^**

**~Ritchie**


	5. Gravity

**Hey again, guys. Welcome to the 5th chapter of my Lucas/OC story. Just so you know, it will follow the season somewhat but it will be twisted to fit the arrival of Brandon.**

**This chapter is all about episode 7...I think. The one with the fancy party for basketball players that Dan hosts at his house...yeah, that one. Hopefully, it's better than I make it sound. And I'm still not getting as many reviews as I want. Hopefully, that will change soon. Tell your friends about this! =) **

_**I'm actually going to be mixing it around a little bit. In this story, Episode 7 comes before Episode 6, which will be my next chapter. Just thought I'd let you guys know so that you're not confused.**_

**By the way, I have a link on my profile to a picture of who I imagine when I think of Brandon Wooldridge. Soon, I'll find a picture for all of the Ocs, but for now, it's just Brandon on my profile.**

**READ AND REVIEW!!!**

**One Tree Hill**

I woke up groggily to the sound of my phone ringing. It was already 9 A.M. I frantically tried to find my phone. It ended up being lodged in between my ass and the space in between the cushion.

"Hello?" I groaned, getting a light chuckle from the other end of the line.

"Wake up, lazy." A familiar voice said. It took me a minute to register that it was Jake who had called.

"Mm...don't call me that. I got, like, six hours of sleep..." I said, now yawning but cuddling into myself to keep myself cozy.

"Yeah? Well, I got about 2. Jenny was kind of antsy last night. She kept waking up every hour or so." he said, creating an image of the beloved daughter form in my mind. "Hey, we still hanging out today?" he asked, sounding somewhat anxious.

"Umm...yeah. Let me just wake up the guys and get ready. I'll be there in, like, and hour." I said, starting to push the blankets away from my body, instantly shivering from the frosty air. "Later." I said before flipping my phone shut.

I looked around only to realize that Lucas wasn't on the couch, anymore. And neither was the blanket from last night. I made my way to the hall closet to put mine away and went to my room to wake Haley up.

I opened my door and saw Haley laid out on my bed, limbs hanging off all ends, and Lucas on my computer looking at, who else, Peyton. She was sitting on her computer chair, drawing something, looking all emo and depressed. Maybe I was a bit harsh last night. Spur of the moment kind of thing. I should probably apologize later or something.

"I already tried waking her up." Lucas said, still not turning away from my computer. "She's totally passed out." he said, now turning around in my swivel chair to face me with a small grin on his face.

"I wish I still were, but Jake and I are gonna hang out before that basketball dinner thing. You decide if you're going yet?" I asked, now leaning up against my door frame.

"I don't know, yet. I'll probably decide with Keith and my moms later, see what they wanna do." he said after exhaling loudly, his hands now behind his head as he leaned back in the chair. His exhale made Haley groan, making me remember that she was still in the room.

"Alright, Fast-Food Junkie. It's time to get up for your shift at the cafe." I said, nudging at her stomach. The only response was a low, guttural groan muffled by one of my pillows. "Get up, Haley. I want my bed back." I whined jokingly, making Lucas chuckle lightly as he continued to face the monitor.

"You know, she broke up with Nathan this morning." he said gleefully. I could hear the smile in his voice. "Do you think I might have a chance now?"

"Well, I don't know, Stalkerella," I started, teasing him. "She's pretty complicated, you sure you're ready for that?" It stung knowing that he felt these feeling for Peyton and not me, but I let that go.

"...Yeah...I think I am." he said, now turning around, smiling uncontrollably.

"Then, the best of luck to ya." I said, slightly quieter than before.

"Alright, I'm gonna go see what they wanna do about tonight. See you, Brandon." he said before getting up from the chair and leaving the house through my door.

"UGGGGGHHHHH!!!" I groaned loudly before flopping down onto an empty spot on my bed.

"I'm sorry, Brandon. It must be hard for you." Haley said sympathetically, now turned to face me, fully awake.

"Forget about that. It's fine. I'll get over it soon." I said, trying to convince both me and Haley. "So, have you decided what to do about Nathan?" I asked curiously, turning my head to face her.

"Yeah...don't be mad, but I still like him. I mean, he can be an ass, but he's getting better." she said, wincing at how I might react.

"I'm not mad. You can control your feelings for Nathan just as well as I can control mine for Lucas. Just...be careful." I warned. "He just seems to take one step forward and then twelve steps back, you know?" She sighed heavily and nodded knowingly.

"Yeah, well...that's not what I see in him. I mean, I know he can be so much better, he has before. I just wish I knew how he felt about me. God, that would make things SOO much easier!" she groaned into the pillow before getting up from the bed. Then, an idea popped into my head.

"Hey, how about giving him a very suggestive note? I'm sure that will wake him up to what's right in front of him." I suggested, propping myself up on my elbow.

"Just a note...isn't that a little awkward?" she said, grimacing at the thought of having to present him with the note herself.

"Well...yeah, I guess so. Any other ideas come to--" I started but was soon startled by a very loud gasp. "Geez, Haley. Any louder and--"

"Sssh! I have an idea. I'm tutoring him before heading to the cafe. Maybe I could give put into some sort of study pack." she suggested, now pacing the room.

"What the fuck is a study pack?" I asked, giving her a puzzled look.

"A study pack. Pencils, erasers, sharpeners...secret love notes. You know, the usual stuff for your studying needs," she said, grabbing a piece of paper and a pen. She wrote something down about a paragraph long and read it out loud to me.

"...'At _**all**_?'" I questioned, giving her a teasing look.

"What? You said 'suggestive,' right?" she smirked, folding it up and putting it in her pocket. "Alright, Bran. I gotta get going. Like you said, I have that shift at the cafe I need to cover. Bye. Thanks for the help." she thanked, hugging me.

"Later, Haley. Have fun tutoring Nathan." I teased, smirking at her shocked face.

"Well, not when you make it sound all dirty like that." she said innocently.

"It _**is**_ all dirty like that." I said before leaving my room and heading for the bathroom for a quick shower before heading to Jake's.

**One Tree Hill**

I walked up to Jake's house and Jake was already on his front porch with a guitar in hand, strumming a few chords. Jenny was with him on the steps, just smiling at her father.

"Hey, Jake." I greeted, smiling at him. He and Jenny both cocked their attention toward me. "I didn't know you could play the guitar." I said. I was surprised why he never mentioned it. "I'm impressed." I grinned, which he returned.

"Thanks. I've been playing for a while now. It seems to help calm Jenny down when she's fussy." she said, looking back down at his daughter, who just lovingly gazed up at him. "Speaking of which, bad news. I have to take care of Jenny today, so we're just going to have to hang out here today." he said.

"Oh, I don't mind. I can catch up with the cutest baby in all of the known universe." I said, gesturing at Jenny, who was still gazing up at her father.

"Ok. Cool. I was thinking of ordering a pizza, maybe popping in a movie." he said, picking up Jenny and opening the door.

"Sounds good. But, uh, anything but 'Frankenhooker,' please." I said, smirking. We both broke out into laughter before I closed the door behind me on the way in.

"So, I guess you didn't really get much of a tour last time you were here." he grinned, flashing me back to the first time he told me about Jenny. "Let me just put Jenny in her crib and I'll get to that." he said while gently placing his beloved daughter into a crib in the middle of the family room.

"What happened to her nursery?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, this is her second crib. The first one, the one you saw the last time you were here," he said, reminding me, "is upstairs in my old room so we don't have to go up and down stairs if she starts crying." he said, now tucking Jenny in and kissing her on the forehead. "Good night, angel. Daddy loves you." he whispered sweetly to her, making me smile. He really was a wonderful father. I can already tell Jenny is going to be so spoiled when she gets older. She already has Jake wrapped around her itty-bitty, adorable, baby finger.

"Actually, that's a great idea, but how could you afford to have another crib?" I asked. I soon realized that sounded pretty bad. "Sorry, that came out--" Jake soon hushed me.

"It's ok." he grinned. "I know what you meant." he said before flopping down onto his couch. "My dad found my old one in storage, so we gave it to Jenny."

"Well, that's cool. She looks pretty happy in it, though. Must be because she knows her dad spent his infant life in there." I said, gesturing toward a, now, sleeping Jenny.

"Mm..." he said drowsily, his eyes slowly shutting from exhaustion. Poor Jake. It must be so hard being a single father in high school. I couldn't even imagine having to take care of a baby all by myself at this age. But he's so strong about it. Not once has he complained about being a parent. I just grabbed the television remote and turned on the t.v., quickly putting it on mute and adding captions. Jake was starting to breathe deeply, so I knew he was already fast asleep. This was...peaceful. Actually, a bit too peaceful. I think I'm...nodding...off...

**One Tree Hill**

I woke up to gurgling coming from Jenny's crib. I got up and made my way to Jenny's crib to check on her. She was wide awake, but quiet. She somehow must have know her daddy needed some rest. I looked at my cell phone. It was already close to three, so I went to the kitchen to grab a bottle of formula for Jenny. As I pulled some out from the fridge, I noticed a picture posted on the fridge. It was of Jenny and Jake when Jenny was first born. Some girl with dark hair was holding her, looking only somewhat happy. I suddenly felt sympathy for both of them, being abandoned like that. I almost knew what he was going through, but his situation was a lot worse. I don't understand how somebody could just leave their family like that. It's so dark and sinister to do that, being selfish on a greater scale like that. I decided to not get too lost in my own thoughts and heated up the bottle in the microwave for a little bit and then checking to see if it was the right temperature, which it was. The formula was perfectly dissolved, so I made my way back into the family room.

I picked Jenny up gently, her head resting on my bicep. I gently put the tip of the bottle close to her mouth so that if she weren't hungry, I wouldn't be forcing her. "There you go, Jenny. I knew you were hungry." I said soothingly. She took it and gently drank.

"You're really good with her, you know that?" Jake said softly from his spot on the couch.

"Yeah?" I looked over and Jake was grinning at me. "I had a lot of practice, I guess. I have a little sister. Her name is Megan." I said, tears forming behind my eyes while I remembered her fondly. As Jenny was finishing up, I sat her back down before I lost control of my emotions. I swiftly made my way back to the kitchen to wash the bottle. I could hear Jake's footsteps follow me.

"Brandon...if you don't mind me asking...why _**are**_ you living with your aunt?" he asked, but in a soothing manner. You could tell he didn't want to press it on me if I didn't want to talk about it.

"Just...some issues...with me and my parents and I...we didn't really agree on some big things, so they...uh..." I said, struggling on whether or not to tell him the entire truth or not, "they kicked me out. I guess I just wasn't what they wanted." I said shakily, my voice breaking slightly.

"Brandon...I'm...I'm really sorry about that." he said consolingly, his hand resting on my shoulder. I only gave him a watery grin in return because I knew if I said even one more word, I would break down right then and there in the Jagielski kitchen.

"Hey, I have to go. You probably have to get ready for that dinner, anyways." I said, rushing out of the kitchen.

"Brandon ,wait!" he called, but I didn't obey him because my tears were streaming freely down my face now, and I couldn't let anybody see me like this. I'm stronger than this, damn it! I can't let this control me.

As I walked back home, I decided to make a detour to the cafe. I had to talk to somebody...about everything. And I think Haley is my best bet when it comes to that.

"Hey, Haley." I greeted with a small smile as I entered the cafe. It didn't seem to be all that busy today. Then again, a lot of the townies must be getting ready for that all-important dinner hosted by the infamous Dan Scott.

"Oh. Hey Brandon. What's up?" she asked me distractedly as she put some money into the cash register.

"You busy?" I asked, sitting down on a stool near her.

"Unfortunately." she groaned, "Karen left me with a lot of stuff to do around the restaurant while she's at that dinner. I guess they decided to go and everything." she said, somewhat out of breath. "Why, what's up?" she asked, now turning her full attention at me.

"Umm...I'd rather do it when you're not busy. How about I help you with some things." I offered, getting up from my stool and going around the counter.

"Sure, if you want. I'll do the stuff on the list and you serve the customers." she said, turning around, looking for something. "Here." She tossed me a white apron and handed me a pencil and notepad. "Have fun, Brandon." she smirked.

"Always do, Haley." I said before putting the apron on and making my way to my first customers.

**One Tree Hill**

"So, I'm pretty sure we're almost done here, Brandon. I'm finished with my stuff. We just have that customer left." she gestured toward a man in a booth who was facing the wall as he was sipping his coffee. "Crap. You get the phone, Brandon. I'll go ahead and wait for him or something."

Without a word, I rushed over to the phone and answered it. "Hello. Karen's Cafe." I greeted.

"Brandon? What are you doing answering the phone?" Karen asked me.

"Ms. Scott? Oh, I was just helping Haley out today. It got pretty...uhh...busy..." I lied.

"Oh, alright. Just don't make a habit of it. Hey, could you tell Haley to bring over a couple of cakes from the restaurant? There's kind of a desert emergency here at the dinner."

"Oh, sure. No problem. Any specific one you wanted?" I asked.

"No. Any will do. Thanks, Brandon. I appreciate you helping Haley out. Is it still pretty busy over there?" she asked curiously.

"Not really. It died down." I said, grabbing a cake from display dish.

"Oh, well then why don't you come along, too? I'm sure she'd like the company." Karen suggested.

"Umm...yeah, I could do that." I said, placing the frosted cake into a pastry box.

"Ok. See you guys soon. Bye." she said before hanging up. I did the same and went over to where Haley was sitting patiently waiting for me to hang up.

"Karen wants us to bring some cakes over to the party. Some sort of desert crisis we need to take care of." I explained, stacking the three deserts on top of one another.

"Oh, ok. Let me just lock up and I'll meet you in the car." she said, turning off the coffee pot. I headed out the door and placed the cakes in the backseat. I closed the door and saw Rick's car start up down the street. I suddenly felt very vulnerable and hopped into the car, locking all the doors and ducked my head as he drove by the car. His headlights reflected off the side mirror, as did his reflection. Yup, definitely Rick.

_**KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**_

The sudden noise made me jump up. I frantically looked over at the passenger door where I saw Haley laughing at me. I unlocked the door, blushing fiercely.

"Wow, what's up with you?" she asked, all while stifling her own bursts of laughter.

"Just...nothing. You know what the address is?" Haley nodded in response, still trying not to laugh.

I sighed defeatedly and started up the car.

**One Tree Hill**

We got out of the car with the deserts, two in my hand, one in Haley's. Then, I saw them. Lucas and Peyton. They were making out under a tree. My heart broke, and Haley knew it so she motioned for us to sneak past them because if they knew we saw them, it would be very awkward.

"Here you go, Karen. Three of your finest cakes." I announced, setting them down onto the empty island counter.

"You know, I don't think we've met before. I'm Deb, Nathan's mother." she greeted.

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Scott." I said, smiling distractedly. She smiled kindly back at me and opened up one of the boxes of deserts.

"Oh, wow. Karen, these look amazing." she said delightfully. "Do you guys want to stay for the party? There's plenty of food and, now, desert." she chuckled.

"Oh, well, Haley still has a shift at the diner." I said, trying to escape from spending another moment here.

"Did you lock up?" Karen asked. Haley nodded. "And turn off the coffee pot?" Again, Haley nodded. "Then I don't see why you can't stay." Karen smiled. "Go on, enjoy yourselves."

"Thanks, Ms. Scott." I said, dreading the rest of the night.

"Call me Karen." She smiled sweetly, which I returned with not as much enthusiasm.

"Lead the way." I said stonily to Haley, who only gave me a sympathetic look.

Haley went her separate way to find Nathan and I tried to make myself as invisible as possible.

"Hey, sexy." Brooke said, swaying her way toward me, slightly off-balance

"Umm...hey...Brooke. Have you been drinking?" I asked, smelling the booze on her breath.

"SSSH!!! Don't tell anybody." she said, her breath making me gag slightly.

"Brooke, let's just...yeah, I'll see you around." I said before swiftly escaping her clutches.

"Bye, gay friend." she called. Luckily, I seemed to be the only person to hear what she said.

"So...you remember...great." I said displeased at the outcome of last night.

"Everybody does, sweetie." she said, still grinning. My heart stopped instantly. Suddenly, I felt like everybody was talking about me. My breathing quickened as I started to panic. I mean, what if Lucas knows? Oh, God. What if Jake found out? I just left like that today without telling him the truth.

"Everybody?" I asked, still panicking slightly.

"Well, everybody that heard it last night. It's all very hush-hush. Plus, half of them were too plastered to even know if it were true or not. But don't worry..." she started before leaning closer into my face, "your secret...safe with me." Her breath was overwhelmed with the smell of alcohol. It was pretty disgusting.

"Umm...thanks, Brooke. I appreciate it." I thanked before I left sluggishly.

I made my way to the bar to see if I could get as lucky as Brooke, but ran into Peyton. She stopped in her tracks, but I knew what I had to do.

"Hey, Peyton. I just wanted to apologize." I said, not sure if I meant it at this point.

"What? Why are you apologizing? I'm the one that was responsible about...everything getting out." she said, still looking sad about it.

"It's not...Let's just...put it behind us. I really don't want any drama." I said with lack of enthusiasm, which she didn't happen to catch.

"Really?" I nodded. "Thanks, Brandon. I'm glad." She grinned widely. "So...anybody you crushing on?" Smooth, Peyton. Real smooth.

"Umm...no, not at the moment." I lied, feeling my heart drop. "I'm over that whole 'Lucas' thing."

"Really? So...would you mind if I...you know...took him off your hands?" she said sheepishly. I chuckled faintly.

"He's all yours, Peyton." she smiled uncontrollably. "So...go have fun." I said uncomfortably, wanting to do nothing but drink.

"Alright. Thanks, Brandon. I'll see you later." she said, hugging me. I patted her back while grimacing slightly. I couldn't help it. She still thought I liked Lucas, yet she still decides to feel him up under an elm.

She left the room and I quickly turned around to the bartender.

"Shot of vodka, please." I said. She looked at me disbelievingly. I sighed heavily. "Fine, just give me a club soda."

"Brandon..." Fuck...another person I didn't want to run into.

"Hey, Jake." I greeted, turning around to face him.

"Hey, look. About today..." he started, looking at me sympathetically.

"Can we...just...forget all of that?" I asked sheepishly, hoping that he wouldn't push me to tell him what everything meant earlier.

"Umm...yeah...but just know that I'm always here if you need to talk to somebody." Jake said soothingly, looking me right in the eye when he did. I knew he was telling me the truth. He's not the type of person to say what he didn't mean, which makes for a great best friend, I guess.

I smiled sweetly in response. I quickly decided to change the subject before it got too uncomfortable.

"So, how's the party? Any hot...d--chicks...?" I stuttered out, swiftly correcting myself. He only laughed at my dorkiness.

"Anyways, I got to get back to the house. My parents will only watch Jenny for so long." he said, his hands deep in his pockets.

"Oh, yeah. Alright. Tell her I said 'hi.'" I said, saying that last word in a cutesy voice.

"Alright, I'll tell her you said hi." he chuckled.

"No, no. You gotta do it in baby talk, if not she won't know for sure that's it's from me." I grinned while he chuckled, once again.

"Alright, I'll be sure to do that." he smirked. "Later, Brandon." he waved before exiting the Scott house through a screen door.

I was lucky to have such good friends so quickly like this. Now, to get back to hating today and everything involving the Peyton/Lucas ordeal.

"Haley!" Nathan called, which could be heard from where I was standing. I turned around only to see a devastated Haley.

"Stay the hell away from me." she said angrily, leaving the party. I decided to confront Nathan about it.

"What the fuck did you do this time, Nathan?" I said ferociously, turning Nathan around to face me using force.

"I didn't do anything! I didn't even know about that note. Brooke was the one that found it and broadcasted it to everybody." he said, slightly surprised by my reaction. "Now get the fuck off of me, man!" he commanded, pushing me back. I would have pushed back, but I knew that he was telling the truth. Maybe Nathan wasn't the problem here. Maybe it was all on Brooke.

At that moment, I saw a glimpse of red turn a corner and decided to follow it. It had to be Brooke, not many others were wearing that color red at this party.

"Brooke!" I called out in the courtyard. She turned around with tears in her eyes.

"What?!" she excalimed emotionally.

"How could you do that to Haley? She has done nothing to deserve that." I said, slightly forceful.

"Because, Brandon, girls like Haley...a-a-and Peyton, they always get the guys they want. And I'm stuck with just one night stands." she said, tears steadily making their way down her face. "For once, I want somebody to want to be in a relationship with me. I want that, Brandon! But no other guy wants that from me!" she said, now sobbing. I made my way to her and pulled her into a hug, soothingly consoling her, trying to get Brooke to calm down.

After about ten emotionally-draining minutes, she left my embrace.

"I know that what you're feeling must be absolutely horrible, but Haley doesn't need that. You can't just target your anger toward men at some innocent person, it's not fair." I said.

"I know...I'll apologize to her next time I see her. God, why am I such a bitch?" she asked rhetorically.

"You're not a bitch, Brooke. You're bitchy," I smirked, getting the same response from her, "but you're not a bitch." She smiled sweetly at me and pulled me into another warm, friendly hug.

"Thanks, Selfless Boy. I needed that." she said sweetly.

"Selfless Boy? Where'd that come from?" I asked, puzzled by the sudden nickname.

"It's what I do with all my good friends. Take it as a compliment." she joked, now grinning.

"Hey, you need a ride home or something? I don't want you all boozed up and not being able to find a ride." Then, I realized one slight problem. "Oh...wait...I can't. Haley probably took the car." I mentioned.

"Nah, it's fine. I'll probably just grab a ride from Peyton or something." she said, making her way back to the party. "Thanks again, Brandon." she smiled before entering the house once again.

Alright, time to hitch a ride from somebody. Oh, look. Lucas is in his car. I jogged my way to his car and noticed something wasn't right. He seemed too emotional. God, what happened tonight?

I entered from the passenger side and sat down. He either didn't notice or didn't care.

"Luke?" I started. "Want to talk about it?" I asked, trying to get him to open up to me.

"Not really, but I have a feeling that's going to change with your powers of persuasion." he said dryly, making me frown slightly.

"Hey, what did I tell you before your Mom said you could join the basketball team?" I asked, trying to get him to remember.

He smirked, remembering our first meaningful conversation.

"That you're here to help." he said, still slightly unemotional.

"That's right. And what do you need at the moment?" I said teasingly.

"Help." he said defeatedly, his forehead now resting on the steering wheel.

"So, what happened tonight, Lucas?" I asked lightly, trying to get him to look at me, but he wouldn't.

"Peyton." he said after a few moments. Seemed to be everybody's problem lately. Of course, she wouldn't do it on purpose, but still. "We were making out, about to...you know..." he said, slightly blushing... "And I told her how much I wanted this and how much it meant to me...which apparently wasn't mutual." he said, his voice cracking slightly.

"Aww, Luke. I'm sorry. You don't deserve that." I said honestly, rubbing his shoulder in order to console him. "You deserve somebody that's always there for you and that loves you as much as you love them, you know? Somebody you can rely on and not have all this drama bullshit between you guys." I listed all the qualities that he deserved, but then again, he deserved so much more than that.

"So...somebody like you?" he said, making my heart stop dead in it's tracks. I realized my hand was still on his shoulder, so I pulled it back as if I've been burned.

"W-W-What?" I asked shakily.

"Umm...Brooke kind of told everybody at the party about yesterday night...but she told everybody to keep it a secret." he said sheepishly, now grimacing at his approach.

"Sh-sh-she's lying...n-nothing happened last night." I lied, stuttering myself into another fib.

"Brandon...come on. You don't have to lie to me. Remember, we're here for each other." he said soothingly before leaning towards me, his warm breath reeking of booze. I couldn't help it, it's like my lips were attracted to his as I leaned forward to fill the small space in between us. But I had to stop myself because I saw that his hand was clutching a bottle of scotch.

Lucas, no." I said, pulling back into my seat. "You've been drinking, you don't know what you're doing right now." I said, now blushing incredibly hard. My cheeks were heating up at a tremendously fast rate. I must have been as red as Brooke's dress. Oh, Brooke. Can't keep a secret for her life.

"Of course I do." he started, "I was about to kiss you. But I go back to my previous question. Should I be with somebody like you?" he asked romantically, gazing into my eyes caressing my jaw line.

"I'm not going to do this, Luke. You still love Peyton." I said, tears forming behind my eyes.

"Well, that doesn't matter to me anymore." he said, still gazing at me, starting to lean back into me.

"But it still matters to me, Luke!" I said, raising my voice to prove it, swatting his hand from my face. "I'm not gonna be some rebound so that you can get your rocks off! You're treating me just like Peyton treated you tonight," I said, tears creeping up to my eyes. "...and I'm not going to let that happen to me." I said emotionally before exiting his car, swiftly getting on my feet and walking back to the house to find the person that caused all of this.

I almost walked back into the party before realizing that it must have looked like I was crying, so I rubbed my eyes with the sleeve of my jacket and continued to go inside. I spotted Brooke alone in the corner, not seeming to enjoy the party.

"Hey, Brooke. Where's Peyton?" I asked frantically.

"Brandon, are you okay?" she asked lovingly.

"Just, please, tell me where she is." I said, starting to feel the tears coming back, burning my eyes. "Please."

"Come on, I'll take you to her." she said, grabbing my hand and leading me down the hall. I tried my best not to break down, but I could feel some tears slip past my eye, sliding it's way down my face. I felt all eyes on me as we went by so many people. Some laughing, some pointing. The whispers seemed to grow louder and louder. I was almost relieved to finally spot Peyton going into one of the bedrooms.

"Peyton!" Brooke called, but she didn't hear it. "Come on." she said, putting her arm around my shoulder, still leading me to her. We entered the room and Peyton was looking for something in one of the drawers, but quickly looked up, her eyes wide with emotion when she spotted my state of emotion.

"Brandon, what's wrong?" she asked consolingly, making her way toward me.

"You, Peyton." I blurted out without thinking. She stopped dead in her tracks before she could make it all the way.

"W-What?" she asked disbelievingly.

"How could you do that to Lucas?" I asked angrily, my hand forming into a fist from all the anger.

"H-He told you?" she asked, looking like a deer in the headlights.

"Yeah...he did. Peyton, you can't just use him like that. He doesn't deserve it." I said, defending my neighbor from any further abuse.

"I know..." she said sheepishly, her handing rubbing up and down her arm.

"No...you don't. You didn't know that he tried to kiss me, did you?" Brooke and Peyton both tensed up.

"I'm sorry. Lucas did what?!" Brooke asked disbelievingly.

"Yeah, so not only are you fucking with Lucas' emotions...but now, you're fucking with mine." I said emotionally. "I still like him okay? So much so that I was hoping that he would get with you because I see the way he looks at you, Peyton. I would do so much for that guy..." I started, tears now making their way down my cheeks. "But I will _**not**_ be a substitute for what he really wants."

"Brandon, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to--" Peyton started, her arms now wrapped around my frame.

"Yeah, I know." I said, now hugging her back. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--"

"Brandon, you have to stop apologizing for things you don't cause." she teased, smiling up at me.

"I guess...hey, do you think you could give me a ride home? I really don't want to be here right now." I asked, sniffling and giving the two girls a small grin.

"Yeah, of course." Peyton said.

"Come on, Selfless Boy." Brooke said, hugging me tightly. "Let's head to the car." Brooke said soothingly, rubbing my shoulders.

**One Tree Hill**

As we pulled up to the house, I said bye to the two people that were there for me today. I exchanged numbers with Brooke, and got out of the car. She wasn't as bad as everybody made her out to be. I can already tell that she's going to be such a good friend through all of this.

I got my house key out and tried to put it into the lock, but instead, the door pushed open effortlessly. I got a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. I entered the house and soundlessly closed the door behind me. I turned the corner of the hallway and saw that one of the lamps had been broken onto the floor.

"Kaylin?" I called. No answer.

I entered the kitchen, and there she was...macking on Larry.

"Oh...jeez..." I exclaimed, making them both turn around in surprise.

"Brandon! Umm...we...were...just..." Kaylin stuttered out, trying to find a good excuse.

"Kaylin...it's ok." I chuckled. "Please...continue...I'm just gonna...yeah..." I said uncomfortably, gesturing to my room. "Have fun." I joked before entering my room.

As soon as I hopped onto my bed, there was knock on my door. Thinking it was Lucas, I ignored it.

"Brandon?" Haley called. I got out of bed and answered.

"Jeez, why didn't you answer?" Haley asked curiously.

"Oh...I was ...getting dressed..." I lied.

"But...you're still wearing the same thing..." Haley said, looking at me quizzically.

"Because...you interrupted me, duh." I said. Obviously, my talent was bullshitting my way so I didn't have to express anything.

"Oh...well...can I talk to you?" she asked.

"Yeah, of course. Come on." I said, pulling her into my room and out of the cold and shutting the door behind her.

"I just..." she started, taking a seat on my bed. "I don't know if I like him anymore, Bran." she said, sighing heavily.

"But you have to." I said, leaning against my computer desk, getting a puzzled look from her. "Long story short, it's not Nathan's fault. He, honestly, didn't know about the note." I said honestly. I really did feel that it was the truth.

"What? Why are you even saying that to me? I thought you hated the second Scott brother." she said, keeping that puzzled look on her face.

"Well, maybe he's not so bad. I mean, you seem to think he's not, so I'm putting my money on that." I said, grinning at her.

"Thanks, Brandon. And how come you don't think it was his fault." she asked curiously.

"Because I trust him." I said, getting a knowing look from Haley in response. "And because Brooke confessed to it all."

"Ahh...Brooke..." she said distastefully.

"She didn't mean to...she's just...got a way of pointing her issues at innocent people. I mean, maybe she's not so bad, either." I said, trying to convince Haley that she shouldn't be mad at anybody.

"Maybe...so...how was the party without me? I'm guessing pretty bad, huh?" she said teasingly, making herself comfortable on my bed. "Wait, don't tell me yet. We need music." she said, getting off the bed to lie down on the floor and grab my CD collection from under my bed.

Then, there was a knock on the door. Maybe Jagielski would like to pay a visit to me, too. But it wasn't Jagielski, it was Lucas.

"Lucas..." I said, surprised that he was here.

"Look I'm sorry about..." he started but was quickly stopped when I pushed him outside. Haley quickly got up and rushed over to the door as I gestured for her to get back, but of course, she didn't listen. Instead, I closed the door behind us for the tiniest bit of privacy.

"Like, I was saying..." Lucas said, giving me a funny look, "I'm sorry about trying to kiss you tonight." Then, a loud gasp could be heard from the other side of the door.

"What was that?" Lucas asked, making his way back to the door, but I swiftly stopped him.

"Umm...it was my aunt...she's...having sex...now, what were you saying?" I blurted. Damn it, couldn't I think of something better?!

"Uhh...are you sure that was your aunt? Because it sounded like it was coming from your--"

"Yeah, yeah...my aunt, she's very, uhh, loud." I said uncomfortably as I pushed him back to the edge of the porch.

"Wow...not something I needed to know." he said, grimacing. I only gave him a small uncomfortable smile in response. "Like...I was saying. I'm sorry if it seemed like you were some sort of replacement. You're not." he said, making me blush. But I wouldn't give up so easily. I crossed my arms defensively and argued his point.

"You're still in love with Peyton, Luke. Which, in turn, makes me the replacement." I said, looking away from his loving gaze.

"But, it's not like that. I really like you, and up until Brooke mentioned your secret, I didn't realize it." he said, keeping his distance from me.

"That's the thing, Lucas. You might 'really like me,'" I started, "but you love Peyton. And as long as that's true, I can't do this...not again..." I said, quieter than before as I lost my confidence. Luckily, I don't think he heard that last part.

"That's not the point." Lucas said, sadness filling his eyes.

"That _**is**_ the point, Lucas. I can't be with you when you have stronger feelings for somebody else." I said, still not looking him straight in the eyes. "God, you don't even know exactly how I feel about you, do you?" Now turning to face him, looking him in his emotion-filled eyes. " I've liked you ever since I saw you at your mom's cafe, and I haven't stopped. You don't even know how much it hurts to hear you talk about her all the time, to watch you daydream about her every chance you get. You jump at any opportunity to be around her. I mean...you say you really like me, but that doesn't change how you feel about her." I said, my voice getting louder and louder with each sentence. I motioned my way back to the door, leaving a stunned Lucas on my porch.

"Bran, wa--" he called.

"Lucas, just...stop...please?" I said, tears forming, my voice trembling with emotion. Before he could respond, I shut the door in his face, watching as his figure in the moonlight walked off my porch. That's when everything let loose. All my emotions, about everything, just consuming me.

"Come here, Brandon." Haley said soothingly, pulling me into her tight embrace. I just started to let everything out, but I did it without a sound. All I could feel were the tears violently streaming down my face as I hugged Haley.

For the next half an hour, Haley just consoled me. My tears went from a steady stream of sorrow to only residence left on my features.

"Is your aunt really having sex?" Haley said, jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

I nodded and chuckled lightly, "Probably."

"Look, I can call my Mom and tell her I'm staying the night, okay?" she offered, sympathy still lying in her eyes.

"That's ok. I just need to be alone." I said, laying down on my bed.

"Well, I don't want to be alone, tonight. So let me stay over for my sake, okay?" she said, knowing I would never admit to needing her right now, even though I truly did.

"Sure, I'm here for you." I said knowingly, giving her a watery smile.

"Hey, Haley?" I called after a few moments.

"Yeah?" she said, turning back to face me.

"After you're done asking, I really need to tell you about why I'm here." I said. She only nodded and continued to dial her house number.

**One Tree Hill**

When she was done asking her mother, who was still out of town, she sat beside me, cross-legged, on my bed.

"So...what'd you want to talk about?" she asked softly.

"Why I'm here...you know, beside the whole being-kicked-out-of-my-own-house-for-being-gay thing.

"Ok..." she said, now turning her body to face me, one hand supporting her head.

"I was...pretty hurt by somebody from Charlotte." I started as I continued to remember the events that brought me to my current emotions about whatever relationship I have with Lucas. "His name is Austin. Austin Mariano.

**One Tree Hill**

"_Hey, Reese. I got you some..." I dropped the bags of Austin's favorite food onto the floor because the scene before me was too much to take._

"_Brandon..." he said, just staring at me apologetically._

"_How long?" I asked, my voice shaky, yet angry._

"_...four months." he said as the person he was cheating on me with was picking up their clothes._

"_What?! You've been cheating on me for four months?!" I said, nearly yelling now._

"_Brandon, calm--"_

"_No! You don't get to tell me that!" I retorted. "So, after my parents found out, I was with you for nothing...great. I risk **EVERYTHING **for you, and you go ahead and do this...and with your ex-girlfriend, no less."_

"_Please, Brandon—I...just...I can't do it, anymore. I don't want to be with just any guy, alright. You know that I've only been attracted to you."_

"_What the **FUCK **does that have to do with anything, huh?! Are you trying to get me to walk back into your arms again, Austin. Huh?! Because I'm not going to. We're done!" I yelled at the top of my lungs before storming out of the house._

_I drove back to my house, only to find my mother and father sitting in the living room._

"_Umm...hi..." I greeted, hanging up my coat in the hallway closet._

"_Don't 'hi' us..." my father said furiously. "Mrs. Mariano told us where you were tonight..." Oh no...no, no, no..._

"_What? I wasn't..." I started but was soon hushed by my so-called father._

"_Shut up!" he shouted, causing my little sister Ashley to wake up crying._

"_See what you did now, Brandon? You woke up Ashley."_

"_Fine, then I'll take care of it." I said, picking her up from her stroller._

"_Get your filthy hands off of her..." my mother said, poison rippling through her words._

"_It's ok, Ashley. Everything is going to be fine." I said soothingly, ignoring my mother's command._

"_She said, put her **down**." My father emphasized angrily. As I put her down, I kissed her on the forehead gently._

"_We gave you another chance, Brandon. And you just continued your sinful act..." my mother said, disgrace and anger pulsating through her gaze._

"_Pack your bags. We don't want you in our house any longer." my father stated._

"_What?! Where would I go?!" I asked frantically, looking at both of my former parents._

"_Don't you get it, Brandon? We don't care anymore." he said, looking at my mother._

_I rushed up the stairs to my bedroom and got a duffle bag and started grabbing whatever I could into it. I pulled out my cell phone and called the first person that came to mind._

"_Hello, Aunt Kaylin?"_

**One Tree Hill**

"And, you know the rest..." I said, stoically staring at my wall.

"I'm so sorry, Brandon. You really don't deserve any of that." Haley said, now hugging me tightly as we both laid in my bed, side by side.

"I just...want to put it past me, you know? Move on from it all." Haley nodded knowingly, yet continued to hold onto me.

"Mind if I put my headphones in? I don't think I could stand the silence while sleeping." I said truthfully, patiently awaiting her answer.

"You know, you could turn on your music. I wouldn't mind falling asleep to it." she said, smiling softly.

"Alright." I said, grabbing the remote for my iPod player and pressed a button to turn it on. It was in the middle of Sara Bareilles' _Gravity._

_Set me free, leave me be. I don't want to fall another moment into your gravity._

_Here I am and I stand so tall_

_I'm just the way I'm supposed to be._

_But you're on to me and all over me._

_I live here on my knees_

_As I try to make you see_

_That you're everything I think I need_

_Here on the ground_

_But you're neither friend nor foe_

_Though I can't seem to let you go_

_The one that I still know_

_Is that you're keeping me down_

**One Tree Hill**

**So, what'd you guys think of this chapter? I hope it was as amazing as I made it out to be.**

**A lot of tears in this chapter, but I promise that next chapter will be way more fun. After all, it's going to be episode 6. You know, the one where Lucas and Nathan get kicked off the bus and where Brooke takes some pills and turns all loopy...yeah...that one...**

**Please, leave me a review of what you think. I take both good and bad ones, so don't be stingy. Until next time.**


	6. If I Could Have You Back

**It's me, again! And I brought chapter 6 along with me, which I'm sure the two of you who read my story are exited for, right? Now, I still didn't get any response for my story, which makes me incredibly sad. You guys do read this, but you need to review! Even if it's just one tiny word. Hell, even a prefix!**

**Anyways, this chapter is based on season 1, episode 6. I'm gonna switch some stuff around just a little bit. Oh! By the way, I think there was some confusion as to why Brandon called Austin "Reese" in his flashback. Reese is Austin's middle name, I really should have clarified. But, here are some of the changes.**

**EPISODE SUMMARY: After Lucas and Nathan get into a fight at a basketball game in Pinkerton, hurting Brooke in the process, Brandon and Haley both miss the last bus home. Peyton offers to give them both a ride with a very drugged up Brooke in the backseat. Some car trouble leads everybody but Brooke to find a gas station. After the three get the gas, they find Lucas and Nathan on the road, they all drive back to Tree Hill together. Lucas finally gets to talk to Brandon without Brandon shutting him out.**

**Pairings: Definite Lucas/Brandon and some Nathan/Haley. Mentions of Peyton/Lucas.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Tree Hill or any of the characters that live in it, they would be the property of the CW. I, on the other hand, own Brandon and his family and ex.**

**Okay guys, you ready? Doubt it, but I'll give it to you anyways. Enjoy!**

**One Tree Hill**

It's been two weeks. Two weeks since that dinner. Two weeks since I made friends with Brooke. Two weeks since Kaylin and Larry hooked up. Two weeks since I told Haley everything. Most importantly, two weeks since Lucas tried to kiss me.

I haven't been the same since then. Everybody has noticed it. I'm more reserved and to myself, but only because I keep getting distracted by the memory of that night. I can remember everything. The feel of Lucas' breath on my lips, the heat from his body as it was pressed up against mine, his hand caressing my cheeks ever so lightly. But I can also remember the bad things from that night. The smell of booze on his breath, me being drunken sloppy seconds, him saying that he 'really likes me' but that he still loves Peyton. Nothing has been the same since that day, and Lucas is the reason why.

"Hey, Brandon." Kaylin greeted softly while walking into my room, breaking me away from my thoughts. I only smiled and continued to gaze at nothing with music from my iPod streaming into my ears.

"So, I took the day off. I thought we could play some hooky, or something. You know, just us?" She leaned against the door frame and looked at me sweetly.

"Can't. Big test today." Lying to her was hard, but I managed. I just couldn't be around her without wanting to spill my guts to her. And I couldn't. It's too embarrassing for people to know that you're second choice to somebody you like.

"Look, Brandon," she started, slowly making her way to my bed. She gently sat on the foot of my bed as I paused my iPod to listen to her. "I know it must be weird for me and Peyton's father to be dating like that, and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you so uncomfortable with it." God, did I really make it seem like it was her fault? I felt so low. "Look, I can--"

"Kaylin, no. This is all me, nothing to do with your relationship. In fact, I'm very happy that you guys are dating. I just...it's not you." I hesitated. See? Something about her makes me want to tell her everything that happened two weeks ago, but I won't let it happen.

"Then, what is it Brandon? You've been so distant lately." A sad look in her eyes told me that she really wanted me to go back to normal. To cheer her up, I did the thing I do best; lie for other people's sake.

"I'm fine. In fact, I'm going to that Pinkerton game tonight. Should be fun." I said, giving her a small grin.

"Oh, okay. Good. That should be fun." I could tell she wasn't convinced, but she was willing to let it go. "Guess I'll go get ready for work and say that I'm okay to go again. Do you want me to give a ride to school?"

"I'm getting a ride from Jake." As soon as I said that, there was a knock at the front door. "See? Must be him." I said, smiling wryly.

"Alright. Have fun." she said genuinely before giving me a warm hug, which I could only return with a half-hearted one. I grabbed my book bag and gave my aunt one last fake smile before leaving my room.

I answered the door to find Jake waiting on the porch for me. "Ready?"

"Yeah," he said, fingers running through his dark hair. "Let's head out."

**One Tree Hill**

"So...about that game...can I get a ride with you?" I asked shyly, my eyes averted from his.

"Umm...good news: I'm happy you finally want to go. Bad news: the buses take us there." he said, still keep his gaze on the road.

"Oh, alright. Well, I'll just catch a bus then, I guess. Save me a spot?" I asked stoically. I still wasn't able to get excited for this. He grinned and nodded as he started to park the car in an empty parking space.

I took off my seat belt and grabbed for my backpack in the backseat. I slung it over my neck to hang off the opposite shoulder before shutting the door of Jake's car.

"Alright, man. I got to go turn in a project I missed. I was absent that day because Jenny was sick. I'll catch you at lunch though, okay?" I nodded and he made his way toward the hallways while I stayed in the courtyard. I plugged my headphones into my iPod and sat down on a bench and continued the song that I left off on when Kaylin talked to me; "If I Could Have You Back" by Aly and AJ.

_If I could have you back again_

_I'd think about it once or twice, I guess_

_If I could have you back_

_I'd reconsider, maybe I'd say yes_

_On the other hand it would be_

_Better to have a life_

_Without the constant indecision over_

_If I could have you back_

_If I could have you back_

I felt a tap on my shoulder and quickly paused my iPod. It was Haley.

"Hey, Music Man. Guess who invited me to the game tonight?" She looked so giddy that it could only be one person.

"Really? Nathan? Haley, that's great!" I gave her a quick hug.

"So, I was thinking, so that I won't look like a total loner in the Pinkerton stands, that you would maybe like to go." she suggested in a soft tone.

"I kind of told my aunt I would go, so now I have to." I said, looking down at the concrete.

"Well, guess you're stuck with me." Haley gave me a quick, yet friendly, hug. "I'll save you a seat on the bus."

"I would love that, but I kind of already asked Jake to save me a seat." I winced, hoping not to get socked in the arm.

"Oh, alright." she said calmly, "I'll just sit next to Lucas." I pursed my lips at his name, which resulted in Haley giving me a knowing look. "You know, you should really talk with him. He's been all mopey lately, almost as bad as you have been."

"Haley--" I started with a very hostile tone, but was quickly interrupted by her.

"I'm not saying to go out with him if you're not ready. I'm just saying that you should try to talk things out to find some sort of middle ground." She slunked forward with her hands clasped, her brown locks swaying with the breeze.

"It's too soon for that, Haley. Plus, you haven't even confronted him about it yet, either. When you do, I will." I teased, looking down at my own hands.

"Oh yeah? Fine. I'll talk to him about it at lunch." I was practically speechless. I was stupid enough to even mention it. I should've known Haley James wouldn't give up.

"No, wait. I was joking."

"Nope, can't take it back." she said before swiftly getting up and heading for class.

"Haley!" I called, "Come on!" She just looked back with a grin. I put my iPod in my pcoket and headed for my first period.

**One Tree Hill**

I took a seat on the opposite side of the room from where Lucas and I used to sit. It was a small class, so we both had our tables to ourselves. I sat down and put my book bag on the table, reaching in for my notebook and a pencil. I felt Lucas' eyes on me, but I decided to ignore it. Instead I focused on Ms. Kingston as she explained the lesson.

When she was done with said lesson, she gave us time to socialize. I just took my iPod out and began to play my music. But I was interrupted by Lucas slipping into the seat next to me.

"Look, Brandon. I--" I responded by blasting my music so that I could drown his voice out. He took the hint, but he didn't leave his seat. Instead, he just continued to stare at me apologetically. Thankfully, the bell rang. I turned off my music and got up as quickly as possible. I could hear Lucas' heavy sigh as I left the classroom.

I made my way swiftly down the hallway. I couldn't have him catch up to me. I wasn't ready to talk about everything, not yet. I was in such a rush that I bumped into somebody; Jake.

"Whoa, Brandon. Going for a new record or something?" he teased, smirking at me.

"Sorry, I should have paid attention to where I was going." Apologizing was easy for me to do. I wasn't sure why, but ever since I moved to Tree Hill, I've been doing a lot of that lately.

"Don't apologize. It's okay. No harm, no foul, right?" He flashed a smile before making his way to his second period. "Look, my offer still stands." he called, which I returned with a puzzled look. "What I told you at the dinner, remember?" He made his way back to me, now with a serious look on his face. "I'm here if you need to talk." I nodded and gave him a small smile before we both went our separate ways to our next class.

**One Tree Hill**

"Hey, Haley" I said glumly while sitting down and putting the book bag next to me.

"Hey. What's wrong?" she asked softly, giving me a concerned look.

"What, don't you remember my schedule?" I teased lightly.

"Oh, right...Lucas. Did something happen?"

"He...umm...tried talking to me." I shifted uncomfortably in my seat.

"Brandon, that's gr—wait a second...tried?"

"Well, I kind of gave him the cold shoulder."

"...Oh, Brandon." She gave me a look that was an odd combination of sympathy and disappointment and then averted her gaze to the notebook that sat in front of her.

"I'm just not ready to talk about it, Haley." I said, now in a hushed voice.

"That's perfectly normal, but at least let him know that."

"...Maybe you're ri--" I was hushed by the teacher who didn't hesitate to tell us what a teachers job was; teaching. Go figure...

**One Tree Hill**

Third period passed by slowly considering the teacher was going on and on with the most boring voice known to man. Everybody in class was practically snoring, some even drooling. And even though it took so long, I wish it took longer, because I really didn't want to see Lucas again.

I sluggishly made my way to my classroom, but I took a spot next to Peyton, who greeted me warmly. My gaze crossed over to Lucas', whose eyes could show a great deal of pain. Maybe I should say something.

"Alright, class. What do you we know about gender roles?" Damn it, too late. I looked back at Lucas, but his eyes were now turned to the teacher. I felt bad. I didn't mean to make him all gloomy. I just couldn't deal with it, any of it. I turned my gaze back to the teacher. After about twenty minutes of open discussion and another 20 minutes of the lesson, Peyton nudged me.

"Psst, Lucas is looking at you." she teased.

"Sure it's not you?" I said, angry at the entire situation.

"No...no, definitely you." she said, catching what I meant but ignoring it.

"Whatever." I exclaimed, anxiously waiting for the bell, but my gaze was always drawn back to Lucas, who saw me struggle with where I was looking. I quickly averted my eyes to the clock and was relieved that the bell would ring in a couple of seconds.

Once it did, I grabbed my stuff and headed to the cafeteria.

Since that night, I now avoided Lucas at lunch and sat by myself. Occasionally, Jake would join me, or Peyton and Brooke would come invite me to sit with them. Haley always stayed with Lucas, though. I mean, I'm not mad or anything. He's her best friend.

So, I sat there, alone. When I saw Haley talk seriously to Lucas. Oh, God. I forgot about this morning. Haley better not be doing what I think she's doing. Oh, but she was. I knew that for sure when she gestured toward me and Lucas looked at me with sadness laying in his eyes. God, how I wish I could just forget it all and be like nothing happened, but I can't. I hate being a part of Lucas' pain, but knowing that Peyton was that other half of his pain made me stubborn enough to keep from giving in to Lucas' cobalt puppy dog eyes.

"Hey, Brandon." Jake greeted before sitting down across from me.

"Hey, Jake." I was completely distracted by Lucas, so my attention wasn't completely on Jake.

"You avoiding them, too?" He took a bite of his sandwich after he said it, washing it down with Gatorade. "I mean, they seem like they're talking all serious and stuff."

"Yeah, seems like they are."

"Hey, you okay?" Jake asked seriously.

"No," I answered truthfully. "Err...no wonder you think I'm depressed. I forgot that I look all shitty today. I didn't get much sleep." I had to correct myself. I didn't want to let anybody in at the moment, even Jake. He just looked at me weird, almost knowingly, and continued to eat his lunch. I looked back over at their table and Lucas was by himself. I searched the room for Haley and noticed that she was talking...no, wait, flirting with Nathan on the other side of the room. I don't want Lucas sitting there all by himself. Damn it. He got the best of me when I decided to get up and drag Jake along with me to sit down with him. He smiled brightly when he saw us coming. We sat down, and I instantly became uncomfortable.

"Hey, Brandon. Jake." he greeted warmly. I only gave him a short, fake smile while Jake continued to eat his lunch. God, if you Googled 'awkward' I'm sure there would be a video of this moment, right here. The silence was truly uncomfortable to me. Before thinking too much about it, I got up and gave some lame-ass excuse that I had to go talk to a teacher about a project. Instantly, I saw Lucas' face turn from happy and cheery to sad and puzzled. God, I can't keep doing this to him, giving him hope when I don't even know if there is. I gave him a quick apologetic look and walked off. I went further down the hallway, my speed increasing with the amount of steps I took. I eventually slowed down and just roamed the hallways. After about ten minutes, the bell finally rang. I headed straight for my next class.

**One Tree Hill**

The rest of the day was the same. Me, hating myself, not really paying attention in class. It was even worse in English since Lucas was in the same room as I. Since we were at the same table, it got harder and harder until I felt like I was going to go explode and lunge for Lucas and ravage him with kisses and caressing, maybe even groping, but I knew I couldn't, I wouldn't. Thankfully, the bell rang before I got a chance to change my mind.

Finally! The game is here!

"Brandon, could I speak with you please?" the teacher asked as the students started shuffling out of the classroom.

"Umm...sure." I tensed up and made my way sluggishly toward Mr. Walsh's desk.

"Your grades are slipping, Mr. Wooldridge." he said as he sat down in his chair.

"I know, I've just been pretty...busy lately."

"I suggest you figure it out soon, before report cards go out." His tone wasn't judgemental or angry, just concerned. "So, I was thinking you could do some extra credit to raise it back up." I nodded, knowing that I had to do it so that my grades wouldn't suffer.

"Alright. I already printed it, it's in the office waiting for you. It'll be due by next Friday. Don't forget, Mr. Wooldridge." he said sternly before getting back to grading papers.

I nodded and made my way across the school to the office. People were completely crowding the office. Not even students, either. It was all teachers and secretaries trying to rush and get out of the school. I finally spotted the printer after about five minutes and grabbed the sheet. A five-page essay on how language is important. Seems easy enough. As I exited the doors of the office, I felt my phone buzz. I opened it to find I got a text from Jake.

_**Where r u? My bus just left.**_

I cursed under my breath and rushed out of the school. Oh, thank God! There's still a bus left. I ran to it, literally, as they were closing the doors. I made my way onto the very crowded bus and spotted an empty seat...fuck...

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me..." I muttered under my breath. I was about to turn around and get off the bus but it had already started to move. I made my way slowly to the empty seat next to Lucas. He looked at me, amused at the outcome. I sat down hesitantly, my book bag sitting awkwardly in my lap, my legs in the aisle so that I could have the least amount of contact as possible.

"Brandon, can we please talk?" he asked, sadness in his voice. I turned slightly to face him.

"Lucas, I can't. I should have told you this before, but it's too hard. It hurts too much. Can we just, please, not talk about this?"

"No, but Bran--"

"Please...Lucas? For me?" I asked, my voice slightly breaking. He only nodded softly but didn't avert his eyes from mine. I could still feel it though, that electricity. And that's what made it all so hard. I had to look away from his loving gaze before I broke down on that bus of what must have been over fifty students.

**One Tree Hill**

We won the game. Yay...I sat with Haley the entire time, up until Lucas and Nathan got into an all-out brawl. Not only that, but they knocked Brooke down. She needed to go to the nurse's office. I saw that and told Haley to wait for me as I helped Peyton take Brooke to the school nurse.

As we waited for Brooke outside of the office, Peyton asked me something.

"So, why lie?" I looked at her, confused. "Why lie to me about how you feel about Lucas?"

I sighed heavily and answered her. "Because you make him happy, and that's what he deserves."

"But, I don't want to make him happy at the expense of your feelings. Hell, I don't even know what I feel anymore."

"Peyton, let's say that you did know your feelings toward him and they were romantic feelings. Who would he choose? You or me?" She looked at me, completely speechless as to what to say next.

"You, Peyton. It's always been you and it will always be you. I'm not going to change that, no matter how badly I wish it weren't true." I told her truthfully, now slumped up against the wall.

"Whoo! I'm better!" Brooke called from the door to the office.

"What the hell happened to her?" I asked the man accusingly.

"She...uhh...found some meds on the floor and took them." I looked at Brooke, who was still bouncing around on one leg even though me and Peyton were trying to keep her still.

"Oh, Brooke. What are we gonna do with you?" I teased as we had her hop to the front entrance of the school.

"Hey, Brandon. Ready to...go...?" Haley asked quizzically while glaring at the bouncy Brooke.

"Yeah, let me just help Brooke into her car." She nodded and we got Brooke close to her car before Peyton asked us how we're getting home. We told her we were going to catch the last bus back home.

"Yeah, it just left." she said, gesturing toward the golden yellow bus turning at a stop sign. "Do you guys want a ride?" she offered with and amused look on her face. Haley and I nodded thankfully as we continued to help Brooke into her car.

"Hey, Tutor Girl! What's your real name?" Brooke asked as she hopped off the curb and onto part of the street.

"Haley..."

"I don't like that name." Brooke exclaimed, making a disgusted face. "I'm going to call you 'Brooke!'" That made us all burst into laughter as we all got in the car. I got stuck with sitting with Brooke in the backseat.

About five minutes in, Brooke made a loud gasp, causing us all to jump out of our seats and Peyton swerved somewhat.

"You know what you are Brandon? You're my gay friend! In fact, you might just be the only gay guy in Tree Hill!" she smiled drunkenly up at me while she rested her head in my lap. "Well, besides Lucas."

Peyton looked over at Haley. "Oh, no. I know. I was kind of there when Lucas talked to Brandon about it." Haley explained. "Anyways, Brandon is the only guy Lucas has ever liked. So, I don't even know what he is." I am? Aww, that's so sw-- no, stop. Don't give in again.

"See?! You're special!" Brooke said loudly, making us all chuckle lightly. Then, the car started stuttering.

"Aww, Brooke! You didn't fill up your gas tank?!" Peyton asked accusingly, glaring at the gauge. Brooke's head popped up and stared at Haley.

"Answer the question, Brooke." Brooke said to Haley, making me grin softly.

"I think I saw a gas station a couple of miles back." Haley said, taking her seat belt off and getting out of the car.

"I'll go with you!" I rushed out of the car before anybody could object to it.

"Count me in, too." Peyton said before getting out. We grabbed a gasoline canister and started to walk down the road.

"Guys!" Brooke whined. "Don't leave me here alone! I'm scared!" I looked back to see Brooke pouting at us through the back window. Hmm...she really did look scared. Stupid medication...

"Did you at least crack the window open?" Haley asked. Silence. We all chuckled lightly at the possibilities of what Brooke would do while we were gone.

After walking for about thirty minutes, we found that gas station.

"Closed." I exclaimed to them while peering into the dark building.

"I have an idea." Haley said, walking to a pale truck. She put a hose into the car's gas and started sucking on it.

"Had a lot of practice?" Peyton blurted, she looked at the two of us awkwardly before choosing to rephrase it. "I meant siphoning gas." I grinned and Haley did slightly.

"Oh, oh!" Haley exclaimed excitedly while gasoline started to pour into the canister we brought. The smell of it filled the air around us.

As we walked back, we just talked about random things. Mostly Tim in English class and he could be so stupid. It was sad, really.

We put the gasoline into the car and Peyton put the top of Brooke's car down, revealing Brooke. She fast asleep, even drooling slightly, with her ass in the air.

"Haley." I called, hushed. I pointed at Brooke and we all burst into a loud fit of laughter.

We drove for about fifteen minutes before Brooke woke up with a startle.

"What's going on?" She looked confused and slightly hungover. "What's Tutor Girl doing here?"

Peyton scoffed slightly and said, "You invited her." making me and Haley chuckle lightly. The song coming from the speakers ended.

"What's next?" Haley asked curiously. The three of us had pretty much the same taste in music.

"Uhh...you pick." Peyton said, her eyes still focused on the road.

"You guys do know you're not going to be friends after tonight, right?" Brooke said rather viciously. The whole car fell into silence once again.

"Look out!" Haley exclaimed, the car screeching to a halt. There they were, the Scott brothers...together?

"Lucas..." I said, not even noticing it had escaped my lips until Haley looked back at me.

"What are you guys doing out here? Get in the car." Peyton said. Haley got out so that they could both climb inside as Brooke scooted over to the other side of the car to make room for them in the middle. Lucas, of course, decides to sit right next to me. We were so close. I could feel the heat radiating off of his skin. He looked over at me, knowing what I was thinking. He tried scooting a little bit closer away from me but I grabbed forearm lightly so that he wouldn't, I smiled apologetically up at him. He smiled widely down at me as we all silently made our way back to Tree Hill.

The entire way, Lucas kept looking over at me every once in awhile, and vice versa. Everybody in the car noticed. The last time I did it, I got caught by Haley, who was looking through her side-view mirror. She grinned at me, and I smiled back shyly. I looked up and Lucas gave me a puzzled look as to why I was even smiling. I just smiled at him and shook my head, hoping he'd understand. He did. His eyes were still locked on mine. God, they were so overwhelmingly beautiful. They had a look of longing and caring. I couldn't resist them. I leaned into him slightly, my head softly resting on his shoulder. That's how I was the rest of the way back home.

First, we dropped off Nathan since he was the furthest away from everybody. Then, it was Haley, who got out of the car with a smile directed toward me and Lucas. Brooke sluggishly made her way up to the front seat, leaving me and Lucas in the back seat. We never even moved. Even after everybody had gotten out, Lucas and I were still squished up against the side of Brooke's car. But it wasn't uncomfortable. In fact, it was really nice. Finally, it was our turn to get dropped off.

I was the first to exit out of the car and Lucas followed suit. I waved to Brooke and Peyton as they drove off. Once they were down the road, Lucas practically tackled me from behind with an embrace. His arms wrapped around my frame lovingly I let out a slight giggle when he started to rock us back and forth.

"Did you just giggle?" he asked teasingly as his breath was tickling at the nape of my neck, causing me to shudder with pleasure.

"Course not. I just-- possibly, yes." I said, smiling up at him. He let me go and I let out a little whine. He grinned but held my hand and walked me around to my porch. Lucas led us to a bench by my door and sat us down.

"So, can we talk now?" he asked, gazing at me for permission. His eyes glistened with emotion as he continued to stare into my eyes. I nodded in response.

"I think I'm over Peyton..." he blurted out, not really thinking about the best way to approach the subject.

"Wow...that was fast." I exclaimed, already feeling uncomfortable with the subject, so I looked down at my white porch. "How do you know for sure."

"Because I've missed you a hell of a lot more than her." he said, smiling sweetly. "In fact, the only times that's she's actually entered my thoughts in two weeks were when I was thinking about how I screwed things up with you."

"You didn't, Luke. I mean, I'm here, aren't I?" I chuckled. "You must have done something right."

"Maybe...or maybe you just didn't give up on me." He then reached his arm out around me and pulled me in closer. The wind fiercely blew at us, making me shiver slightly. He pulled me in tighter. "You want to go inside?" I nodded and then grinned up at him with caring eyes.

"Do you want to come with me?" I asked hesitantly. He smiled widely and kissed the top of my head before we got up from the bench and went inside my room. I turned on my lights and the soft glow from my lamp lit the room up just enough so that we could make our way around the obstacles. Lucas closed the door behind us.

"Umm...those aren't your clothes, but I have some that you can we--" I suggested but was cut off by Lucas' lips lightly pressing up against mine. Shocked, I couldn't even move. Definitely wasn't expecting that. Then, I began to kiss him back. His lips were so soft and gentle, yet hungry and passionate. He pulled me closer to him, making me gasp softly to myself. His arms wrapped around my back, gently caressing it. As he did, my arms seemed to make their way around his neck, pulling his head closer to mine. I didn't want to leave his embrace, leave his lips, but I knew I had to stop him before it went to far. But I couldn't seem to stop. I just wanted this so badly that all logic was thrown out the fucking window. Slowly, we made our way to my bed, never stopping to see where we were going.

I dropped onto the bed as Lucas began to caress my thigh. Our tongues were now sensually caressing each other, each exploring the mouth of the unfamiliar. His groin was now grinding into mine, sending me into a euphoria of pleasure. He quickly pulled away and took his sweatshirt off, tossing it onto the computer chair. The chair where he sat there two weeks ago to see Peyton on her webcam, where he said that he was going to go for it and get with her.

"Lucas, wait." I said in between kisses. "This is going a little bit too quick for me..." I said apologetically. He sighed deeply but never looked away from me.

"Alright." he quickly pecked me again on my lips. "It's okay. I'll go." He grabbed his sweatshirt and started to pull it back on.

"No, Luke. I don't want that. Can you just...stay with me for the night? Please?" I asked, my elbows holding me up on my bed as Lucas stopped putting his shirt back on.

"Sounds great." He smiled sweetly and continued to put the gray material back onto his torso.

"Whoa, wait." I started, "I never said to get dressed." I gave him a suggestive look and he stripped off the gray sweatshirt once again, tossing it toward my closet door. "Much better." He chuckled at me and climbed into my bed. I snuggled into his bare chest and he wrapped his arm around my waist. I couldn't help but wonder something as I lay there in his warm embrace.

"So, Lucas...what...uhh...what are we?" I asked hesitantly, hoping not to force him into the answer he thinks I'd like to hear but to what he really wants to tell me. I looked up at him sheepishly, hoping that I didn't ruin anything.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I consider you my first, and only, boyfriend." he smiled sweetly at me. The silhouette of his lips hovered over my mouth before he closed the gap in between us and kissed me sensually. He ended it with a couple more light kisses, knowing that if we continued to kiss they way we did, we would get farther than I would want.

"Well, that's good. I mean, I have to tell my other boyfriend, but other than that..." He chuckled at me and kissed me lovingly on my forehead. "Acutally-- no, sorry. Too early to have that talk." It was no use. Lucas was already prodding playfully, wanting to know what I was going to say. "Too early to talk about past relationships." I said, looking away from his gaze.

"No, come on. I want to know. I mean, you know mine..." he said seriously.

"...Don't say I didn't warn you." I then continued to tell him everything I told Haley two weeks ago. Everything about my parents, my sister, Austin. Everything.

"But yeah, that's my past. Everything you need to know about me." I said, still looking anywhere into his eyes, just in case he wanted to pull away from me and walk out, so I wouldn't see the pain in his eyes.

"I don't think it is." I gave him a quizzical look. "I don't think it's everything I need to know about you. Like...what's your favorite color? Favorite thing to drink? What music do you listen to when you're happy? Sad?" I just smiled lovingly at him, knowing that he wouldn't judge me on the life I used to have. "Come on." he said, getting me up from the bed.

"What?" I chuckled "What are you doing?" He just grinned and told me it was a surprise.

He grabbed his shirt and pulled it back on, making me frown. "What, no more sexy shirtless Lucas?" I asked him playfully, walking slowly up to him. He only chuckled and shook his head lightly. "Aww, too bad. It was a nice view." I said suggestively before giving him a peck on the lips.

"Come on, follow me." He led me out the door and to his car, motioning for me to get inside. I obeyed and got into the passenger seat.

"Where are we going?" I asked even more curiously.

"I told you already. It's a surprise." He only grinned at me before starting the car and pulling out of his driveway.

After driving for a few minutes, he reached out and held my hand. "I miss the contact." I smiled at him and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Ooh, more contact please." I chuckled and gave him a playful punch. "Come on, not that kind!" he joked, continuing to drive us along a somewhat familiar road.

After twenty more minutes of random conversation and more hand caressing, he parked in a spot that faced the beach.

"The beach? What are we doing here?" I asked curiously, unbuckling my seat belt.

"Just...come on." he said before getting out of the car. I followed him out.

"Luke, it's cold." I said, rubbing my arms for warmth.

"One sec." he said before rushing to the trunk of his car. He pulled out a red blanket and wrapped me in it. "There we go." He smiled sweetly before motioning for me to walk. "And for a little more warmth..." He then wrapped his strong arm around me, instantly giving me butterflies. "Better?"

"Tons." I said, snuggling into his embrace as we walked in the sand. We were about twenty feet from the shore before he asked me to sit down. Instead, I laid the blanket out and sat on it before motioning for him to join me. Once again, he wrapped his arms around me, bringing me warmth using his body heat. I rested my head on his arm and put my hands in between myself and Lucas. I looked up at him and realized how lucky I was.

"You're amazing , you know that?" He gazed down at me after I said those words.

"Well, you're not so bad yourself." he teased.

"No...I mean it. You make everything just...disappear. Like...we're the only two people on the planet or something." I was expecting him to laugh in my face at the corniness but he only pulled me in tighter and kissed my forehead.

"You do the same for me, Brandon. That's why I don't care who knows about us. I want us to be exclusive."

"Really? Are you...ready for that?" I was extremely happy, but at the same time, I wasn't sure if Lucas was ready for our relationship to go public.

"Yeah, really."

"You are comple-- holy crap, did you see that?!" he chuckled heartily, a deep rumbling coming from his chest, vibrating against my chin as I gazed up at the sky. That's when it hit me. "You knew about this, didn't you? That there would be a meteor shower tonight?"

"Of course. Why else would I risk freezing both of our asses off?" he grinned before taking my hand and pointing it above us. "Look. There's another." He dragged my hand along the tail of the comet. I clasped my hand in his, getting a look from my new boyfriend. "What?"

"Nothing. Just love the contact." I said before he kissed me again, this time more romantically. Soon, he was above me and I could see the meteor showers in the background from his handsome features. It was the perfect background, the perfect area, and the perfect guy. He continued to kiss me sensually and started to kiss my neck with small, feather-like pecks. It drove me absolutely crazy. He kissed his way back up from my neck and kissed me, his lips lightly touching mine before he dragged his tongue ever so lightly across my lips. I responded by gently nibbling on his bottom lip, which caused him to groan in pleasure. He entered his tongue in my mouth, both appendages were now fighting for dominance. I flipped us over on our side and caressed the back of Lucas' neck. He caressed one of my cheeks through my pants before pushing my bottom half closer to his, our groins now grinding with each other, causing us both to moan loudly.

I decided to screw what this might do for our future and went to caress his shaft through his jeans, causing him to open his eyes in surprise but he moaned otherwise before continuing to close his eyes in pleasure, continuing to kiss me passionately. He continued to caress my ass, but he was now more rough and passionate about it.

I snaked my free hand under his sweatshirt, pulling it over his head, and rubbed my hand over his pecks. I slowly started planting rough, wet kisses down from his neck to his chest. I placed my left hand on one of his nipples and the other was still massaging his cock through his denim barrier. I licked my way down to the free nub and licked around it, causing Lucas to groan loudly. I sucked on it gently, bringing it to a stiff peak, occasionally grating my teeth along it. I removed both hands and started to unbuckle his jeans.

"Wait," Lucas said, panting slightly. "I don't want to go this fast. I want us both to be ready for this." he said pulling me up to meet his face.

"Wow...buzz kill..." I said teasingly before kissing him sweetly. "Thanks, though. I just couldn't help myself. You're just so damn sexy." I gave him a suggestive look before kissing him lightly again and gliding my hands across his bare torso, relaxing.

"Mmm...I love it when you do that." His eyes were half open and he sounded tired. "Makes me feel relaxed."

"Well, I love doing it, so no complaints here." I said jokingly, continuing to caress his chest. He then started to run his fingers through my hair, making me feel safe. We stayed like that for hours on end before we had to leave.

He walked me to my door and kissed me lightly before turning to walk away.

"You know, my offer still stands on you staying the night." I said, opening my door and leaning on the door frame.

"Good. I really didn't want to have to go bed without you, anyways." He walked through my door and lay down on my bed before taking his sweatshirt back off. I grinned and closed the door, locking it and turning off the lights. The moonlight peered through the window just enough for me to see the silhouette of Lucas splayed out across my bed. I gently pulled my shirt off, tossing it in the other direction and climbed into bed. "Hey, how come I don't get to see you all shirtless and sexy?"

"You'll just have to wait until morning." I said jokingly into the darkness. The light from the sky lit Lucas' features just enough so that I could see him grin softly above me.

We were starting to drift off to bed when I got to thinking about what Lucas said to me earlier.

"Purple." I blurted out.

"Hmm...?" he questioned groggily.

"My favorite color...purple." I started, him shifting beneath me so that we were facing each other. "What about you?"

"Hmm...Right now, I'd have to say green."

"Oh yeah, why green?" I asked curiously.

"Because they're the color of your eyes." he said romantically. I felt my heart skip a beat as he wrapped his arms around me to pull me in closer. I motioned to rest my head in between his chest and his jaw as he started to lightly caress the back of my arm with the pad of his thumb. "Tell me more."

"Umm...I love Vitamin Water. It's always so delicious and refreshing. Yum." I excaimed, making him laugh gently. "My favorite band is The Kooks when I'm happy and Acceptance when I'm sad. Now you go..." I said, egging him on to tell me stuff about him.

"I gotta say my favorite drink is Red Bull."

"You manly-man, you." I teased, which only made him chuckle heartily.

"Damn straight, and don't you forget it." I could feel him grinning against the top of my head, his jawline expanding ever so slightly while his laugh rumbled through his entire body. "Let's see...happy band: Morningwood. Sad band: Dashboard Confessional."

"Both very good choices." We just sat there, in the dark, talking about ourselves to one another until we both got tired around two in the morning. I could feel myself start to drift off as I heard Lucas' breathing start to deepen. The last thing I could remember thinking to myself was how I'm gonna love it here in Tree Hill.

**One Tree Hill**

**Hope that was better than anticipated. I didn't go as far as intended with that beach scene, but I think any farther and it would have gone by too fast.**

**Anyways, review and tell me what you think. I really do appreciate your words, no matter if they're positive or negative. Alright. Until next time.**


	7. Cross My Heart

**First off, I want to say thank you to naleysocute23 and xXFreedom-ReaderXx for reviewing! I owe you guys big for giving me feedback! =)**

**Second off, YAY! 544 hits! That's amazing. Now if only some of you could review... XD**

**Third...off...? (Doesn't sound correct to me lol) I have links to who I picture as Kaylin and Austin to help your guys' visual on them. Hopefully, they're who you were thinking of. If not, continue on picturing who you were, no difference to me XD**

**Alright, this chapter is set during episode 8, but the only things that happen from it are Karen's acceptance letter from the culinary school in Italy and Nathan and Haley's date that was set up by Haley. It also has some familiarities to episode 9.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own One Tree Hill...BLAH BLAH BLAH...you know the rest by now...**

**Pairings: Lucas/Brandon, Haley/Nathan, Kaylin/Larry, and mentions of Karen/Keith (amazing couple)**

**Chapter Summary: Brandon and Lucas tell their friends that they're together. Lucas has yet to tell his family. Brooke plans a date for Nathan and Haley to make up after ruining things for them at the dinner. Once they've made up, Brooke gets fake ID's for everybody and invites them all to a local bar the following day. A surprise guest shows up to greet the gang.**

**ONE TREE HILL**

I woke up, snuggling into the form that lay next to me. At first, I thought it was Lucas, but it was actually my pillow. Disappointed, I got up groggily and looked at my cell phone for the time. 6:57. My alarm was going to go off in about three minutes, so I turned it off before sluggishly making my way to the closet to grab some clean clothes and head for the bathroom to shower.

"Mmph," Kaylin began, practically spitting out her coffee back into the mug to get her bit of dialogue in. "Mornin', Bran." Her golden locks were pulled back into a tightly-bound ponytail. One hand was holding her coffee cup, the other was holding the newest _Cosmo_ magazine as she sat at our dining table.

I only grunted in response to her greeting. I'm not much of a morning person, especially since of the disappointment a few moments ago. It's been a week since Lucas and I got together. The first person we told was Kaylin, but only because she caught us sleeping rather close together. There was also the matter that we were both shirtless. She was happy for me, for us. Haley was next. She, of course, knew already because she saw me leaning up against Lucas in the car.

Actually...so far, that was it. We weren't really sure about any PDA because we wanted to make sure that nobody that knew Karen and/or Keith would see since Lucas hasn't exactly told his mom yet, which is definitely something Lucas should do when he's ready. We were actually planning on telling all of our friends soon, and Nathan, so that we could be ourselves around them, so that we don't have to hide our relationship from them.

As I made my way to the shower, my phone vibrated in my hand. I opened it and was pleased to see that I got a text from Lucas.

_**LUCAS - Wake up... :)**_

I smiled uncontrollably at his message. He was such a cute texter. But don't let that fool you. He's also a great sexter. The things he's sent me could make a porn star blush.

_**A couple minutes too late, but thank you!**_

_**LUCAS**** – My pleasure, babe. I'll meet you at your place in about 20 minutes.**_

_**Can't wait ;)**_

And with that, I chuckled at myself and closed the door behind me and disrobed, placing my clean clothes on the counter next to the sink and leaving my used ones strewn out across the baby blue bathroom tile. I let the water run to get the right temperature before hopping in.

**ONE TREE HILL**

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

I had just gotten dressed as I heard the knock at the door. I rushed out of the bathroom, leaving the door wide open so that the steam could escape from out of its four-wall containment.

I opened the door and greeted Lucas with a warm hug and quick peck on the lips.

"Hey, Luke. Come on, I still have to grab my bag." I gestured behind me as I led him inside.

"Hi, Lucas." my aunt greeted as she poured herself another cup of coffee, giving him a friendly smile. He waved in return, causing me to chuckle lightly. He was still somewhat uneasy with my aunt knowing about us. He told me it was because she knew his mother, but I reassured him that she wouldn't say anything if we didn't want her to...despite her outing me to her new boyfriend, Larry...yeah, I kept that to myself.

"Let me just grab it and we'll head out." I went into my room and grabbed my shoulder bag and my iPod and made my way back to the kitchen. "Alright, Kay. We're gonna go, now. Have fun at work..." I teased before hugging her.

"And you have fun at school." she teased back, giving me a tiny grin before taking another sip of her coffee. "Bye, Lucas."

"Bye, Ms. Everson."

"Lucas, you know that you can call me Kaylin." He quickly corrected himself and we were out the door.

"You seem extra nervous today." I stated as we got into his car. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm actually kind of excited. We finally convinced my ma to go to that culinary school in Italy." He had a huge smile plastered across his face. He was truly happy that his mom finally got a chance to do what she wanted after so many years.

"Lucas, that's amazing. I'm so happy for her." He grasped my hand in his, his warm, gentle fingers gliding over the back of my hand. "When does she leave?"

"Her flight leaves tonight."

"Yeah? Does that mean we get the house to ourselves tonight...?" I asked, my eyebrows raised suggestively.

"As...amazing as that sounds, there's no such luck. Keith is going to stay with me when my mom is in Italy." I felt a rush of disappointment. I mean, we haven't done anything yet. We both knew it was too early to do that kind of stuff already, no matter how much we wanted it to happen. "How about your place?"

"Mm, can't. Larry is coming over tonight." Now, Lucas just looked disappointed, but was probably still deep in thought about where we could go.

"Guess we can just wing it." Lucas said before looking over at me with his loving gaze, slightly grinning at the possibilities.

**ONE TREE HILL**

The bell rang and Lucas and I were sitting next to each other, as per usual. As the teacher taught us a new lesson, I decided to use our teenage hormones to my own advantage. I reached over to Lucas' thigh and started rubbing it lightly, causing him to take a small intake of air. I kept rubbing his thigh and I could feel the reaction of it as his jeans started to get tighter. I slowly began to caress his inner thigh, but was quickly stopped when Lucas grabbed my hand, lust in his eyes.

"Anymore of that and I'd have to rip your clothes off right here and now." he whispered into my ear, his warm breath tickling it. I bit my lip bottom lip at the thought, the visual playing in my head.

"And who said that would be a bad thing?" I said seductively before turning my attention back to the teacher.

"You're such a tease, you know that?"

"Don't lie, you love it." I said nonchalantly, my gaze still on the teacher, a small grin playing it's way across my lips.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Hey, Jake." I greeted as I sat down in my usual spot next to him. I sat my book bag on the floor next to me after pulling out some notes and a pencil. "Here are the notes you wanted."

"Thanks, Brandon. Couldn't pass this class without you." I passed him the notes and started to explain when the bell rang and I saw Brooke come in right on time before taking a seat next to me.

"Hey, Selfless Boy. So, I was thinking about trying to get the two lovebirds back together after that...incident at the dinner. How's about a planned date, on moi, of course." If it were me, I might have been somewhat breathless by now, but she could just keep talking and talking without any air. She was quickly hushed by the teacher, but Brooke began whispering it to me when the teacher wasn't looking. "I was thinking that they should go to dinner and they'll order for the other their own favorite dish. Any other ideas?"

"Actually, that one is pretty good." Half of me was listening to Brooke while the other half was taking notes on what was up on the board.

"Ok, well I need more here, Brandon."

"I don't know, Brooke. Think of something you would want to do on a date."

"Well...I would..." She had a suggestive grin on her face.

"Except that." I grinned.

She gave a heavy sigh and took out her notebook to scribble down the lesson.

**ONE TREE HILL**

The bell rang and I gathered everything up. Brooke had, for some reason, rushed out of the classroom.

"Here you go, Brandon." Jake said. I turned around to see him reaching out to hand me back the notes that I had given him at the beginning of class. He gave me a grateful look as he slung his backpack over one shoulder. "Definitely helped."

"Well, I'm glad it did. Last thing you need is some bogus notes that makes you fail your class. Any plans for the weekend?" I asked curiously as we exited the classroom into the hallway filled with the ocean of students heading for their next class.

"Not really. Probably going to just stay at home with Jenny." Poor Jake. So much responsibility for a teenager. But here he was, not even complaining. He knows what he did, but he doesn't regret it one bit because it gave him Jenny.

"Oh yeah? How's she doing?" I haven't seen her for about two weeks, and I truly did miss her. She reminded me of my little sister, Ashley.

"She's good. A lot quieter than normal, though. Although she doesn't really have any symptoms of being sick. I think I might even take her to the doctor's after school, just to make sure, ya know?"

"Oh, yeah. Definitely. Don't want to risk it or anything. Alright, I'll see you at lunch. Later." I said before waving back at him. I entered my classroom and quickly greeted Haley with a small smile.

"Hey, lover boy." Haley teased, a wide grin on her face.

"Hey." I let it slide and sat down next to her.

"So, how's the new relationship going for ya?" she asked curiously, her full attention turned toward me.

"Honestly? It's amazing." I smiled uncontrollably at the thought of being Lucas' boyfriend, and vice versa. I always did, though. He always found a way to make me happy, even if he weren't around.

"That's great. I'm really happy for you guys." She gave me a sincere smile before continuing the conversation in a somewhat different direction. "When are you guys planning on telling everybody?"

"Well, we're not really sure. We know it won't be easy to tell his mom, but we don't know if we should tell her first or the others." Listen to me. All 'we' and 'us'. God, when did that happen? I couldn't lie. I was falling fast, and when I fall fast, I fall hard.

"Well, that depends. Do you trust everybody in our group to keep it a secret?" Good question, Haley. Do I?

As I pondered her question, a new thought popped into my head. "Oh, you might have a date with Nathan tonight, and I think you should go."

"WHAT?!" she exclaimed so loudly that the teacher had faced her and told her to calm down. She just gave an apologetic smile and looked down at her notebook, blushing lightly. Being publicly humiliated, no matter how badly, made Haley embarrassed. She hated being called out.

Once the class was over, Haley grabbed me by the sleeve of my shirt and asked once again.

"You'll see..." I teased before grabbing my things and swiftly exiting the classroom, an annoyed and confused Haley trailing not to far behind. I headed for the cafeteria and grabbed our usual table, where Jake was already sitting. Haley and I both greeted him warmly as Lucas sat next to me.

"Hey, guys." He greeted the whole table, but only looked at me. I smiled uncontrollably, maybe even blushed slightly. Haley glanced at us knowingly, smiling to herself. Jake, however, was clueless. He had no idea what the difference was.

I looked over at the "popular" table, only to find Nathan gazing over here. I followed it, but there was no need to. I knew he was looking at Haley. She just continued to have a conversation with Jake and Lucas. He noticed that I saw him, so he tried to hide it by averting his gaze to something behind Haley. I only chuckled lightly and started to converse with my friends.

**ONE TREE HILL**

Finally! That English test felt like it took forever. I'm glad it's finally over. Now, I can go home. Oh, wait. I just have to turn in that paper. I motioned for Lucas and Haley to wait for me and made my way to the teacher's desk.

"Here you go, Mr. Walsh." I said, handing him the essay I had just pulled out of my somewhat disorganized book bag.

"Thank you, Brandon. I expect this to be top notch." He really was friendly, but he still had control over the students and how they acted in his classroom, a sort of presence of authority. I just nodded in response and zipped up my bag and looked over my shoulder to see Lucas and Haley hovering over my frame.

"Jeez, stalkers. Can't I turn in a paper without the two of you sticking your noses in it?" I teased as we walked out of the classroom.

"What paper?" Haley asked, slightly confused at the fact that she didn't know there was a paper due.

"It was...nothing. Just some extra credit."

"For what?" Lucas asked curiously, his tone was serious.

"I was just...having some trouble for a few weeks," I looked over at Lucas, whose eyes were instantly filled with regret as soon as he figured out why I was having trouble, "...so Mr. Walsh told me I could get my grade back up with that paper, so I did it...and here we are..." I finished off the explanation with uneasiness, knowing that Lucas was still thinking it was his fault.

I had to reassure him, so I leaned up slightly and whispered in his ear so that no other students could hear. "It wasn't because of the kiss..." I told you. I couldn't help but lie to others in order to spare their feelings. He just gave me a small smile, knowing what I was doing, but trying to get me not to worry about him.

"Alright, boys." Haley piped up, walking in front of us, walking in reverse. "Time to drop me off at the cafe. A girl's gotta work."

"Sorry guys. I got to drop off my moms at the airport." I frowned. I completely forgot.

"Hmm...how else are we going to get out of here?" Haley asked, looking around campus for a familiar face.

"You guys want a ride?" A familiar voice asked from behind us. Peyton stepped out of the hallway and into the open quad.

"Peyton, that would be awesome." I exclaimed in a grateful tone. I said goodbye to Luke. Just a simple 'bro hug.' You know the one. Where guys clasp hands and push into each other while patting each other's backs...I know...it sounds gayer than it looks, I promise you that nothing was given away. It was honestly the most contact we could have in public, anyways. So why complain? At least it was some form of contact with Lucas.

We got into Peyton's car; Haley in the front seat, me in the back. "Now, come on. My mother likes it when I make it home alive. Let's go..." She made both me and Peyton guffaw at her joking manner. I looked to the my right and I saw Lucas look sadly at us, alone in the quad. I gave him a small wave, which he returned.

"Hey, Brandon. How's about going to the mall with me while Ms. Haley-works-a-lot, over here, does her shift at Karen's?" Haley scoffed in response, making me grin softly.

"Sounds good." I said distractedly. Luckily, not too distractedly enough for anybody to notice.

After shopping for a couple of hours with Peyton, she dropped me back off at my house. As soon as she drove off, I noticed a familiar car parked in the driveway. My heart stopped once I realized whose car it was. Then, I saw somebody sitting on the bench in the front of porch. I walked up the stairs, slowly, and greeted him.

"Rick..." I greeted cautiously.

"Oh, hey kid." he greeted in a somewhat twitchy manner as he smacked his gum loudly. "I was just waiting for Kaylin. Is she...home, by any chance?" he asked as he scratched at the nape of his neck.

"Umm...not for a few hours..."

"Well, you mind telling her I was here...you know...again?"

"No problem, Rick..." He just continued to stare at me with a chilling look. "...bye..." He just waved. I rushed around the porch to my room and unlocking it. I got into my room and locked my door behind me, dropping my shopping bags on the floor before swiftly making my way to the front door to make sure it was locked. It was. I felt a rush of reassurance surge through my body. That is, until I peeked out through the blinds and saw Rick just sitting in his car. I was seriously creeped out, so I called Brooke to get Peyton to give her a ride to my house.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Hey, Brandon. What's up?" Brooke asked in a concerned tone as she stood on my porch alongside Peyton, who looked as equally concerned. "You sounded hell of frantic on the phone." I quickly gestured for them to come inside and peeked back outside before closing the front door. He was still there...just...waiting.

"That guy...in that car. He's been there for almost thirty minutes, even after I shooed him away." I started. God, I sounded like such a paranoid fuck, but I couldn't help it. Something about him made me completely uneasy. "He's been coming here for my aunt for, like, the past month or so."

"That is creepy. Want me to call the cops for you?" Peyton asked, pulling out her cell phone.

"No...just...stay? I really don't want to be alone in this house with that freak parked across the street."

"Yeah, yeah. Of course." Brooke responded, still giving me a concerned look.

"Hey, why don't we show Brooke what we got you at the mall." Peyton suggested with a wide grin on her face. I gestured my way to my room and they followed the direction until they hit my bedroom door.

"So...this is Brandon Wooldridge's room...Not totally what I expected, but it has it's accurate points." Brooke said as she looked around it. Peyton just sat at the foot of my bed and looked at Brooke in amusement, as did I.

"Oh yeah? What'd you get right?" I asked curiously as I leaned back onto my mattress, propping myself up on one elbow.

"The red walls. You definitely look like somebody who would have red bedroom walls."

"Oh yeah?" I chuckled. "And how does somebody who has red walls look like?"

"Like you...duh!" It was useless to argue with Brooke's joking logic. "That and the dim lamp at the computer desk, black bed set...wow, I'm good." Peyton and I both chuckled heartily at her reaction to my four walls of solidarity. "Ugh, my phone is dead. Can I use yours? I need to call my mom and tell her I'm here...not like she cares." I nodded and pulled my phone out of my pocket, handing it to Brooke.

"Oh...Oh...my...God...Brandon! You got 'I'm so hard for you right now, I wish you were here to take care of it' from Lucas Scott?!?!?!" I instantly blushed furiously, snatching my phone back as Peyton and Brooke continued to laugh hysterically. I just stood there, completely speechless.

"Umm...this wasn't exactly the way I wanted you guys to find out..." I said, avoiding their gaze as they continued to laugh.

"How..." Brooke tried to get something out as she tried to hold in her laughs. "How...long?" She got out before she let out another fit of laughter.

"Since the Pinkerton game."

"No...how _long_???" This just made Peyton break out into an even heavier fit of laughter.

"Brooke!" I exclaimed, trying to sound offended but only ending up with a grin sneaking it's way onto my mouth. I slowly gave into my pent up laughter, letting it out like the other two.

After about ten more minutes of laughter that slowly died out to a few loose chuckles, they told me that they were happy for me and everything. Two down, one more to go...sort of. Well, one I actually care about.

"So, I sent Nathan to pick up Haley from the diner when her shift is over." Brooke started, her head resting on one of my pillows. The three of us were now spread out across my bedroom. Brooke was relaxing on my bed. I was sitting on the hardwood floor, my back leaning onto the back door, and Peyton was sitting in my computer chair. "I'm even having them go to a lingerie store."

"Brooke, you didn't!" I looked at her incredulously. Wow, they were in for quite the night.

"Oh! And I was thinking, once they make up and all, I could grab us all a bunch of fake ID's and head for a bar. What do you think?"

"Who's 'we'?" I asked curiously.

"Umm...Me, Peyton, Lucas, Haley, Nathan, and you."

"Could we invite Jake, too? He told me that he was just going to stay home tomorrow."

"Yeah, no problem."

"So what bar were you thinking of?" Peyton asked distractedly as she rotated in my chair.

"The Raspberry Cadillac..." An amused look made it's way onto Peyton's face.

"No way! A gay bar, Brooke?!"

"What?! Brooke..." I wasn't sure if Lucas would even be comfortable to be seen walking past it, let alone drinking at it.

"Fine, fine. Spoil all the fun. How about The Buzz Bar?" she asked, looking over at Peyton for an answer.

"Better." Peyton teased as she rotated her chair in a 360 degree circle...again.

**ONE TREE HILL**

I led them to the front door to wave them off. I opened the door and was relieved to see that Rick was no longer parked in front of the house.

"Alright, later Selfless Boy. Don't forget to sext Lucas tonight." she teased before hopping her way across my porch and down the steps. Peyton just chuckled lightly at her before saying goodbye to me. I looked over and saw that Lucas was just getting home from dropping off Karen at the airport. I decided to text him afterall.

_**Come over. I have to fill you in on everything.**_

I smirked at myself, remembering my day with Brooke and Peyton, before making my way back inside.

A couple of minutes later, I got a knock on the backdoor. Of course, it was Lucas.

"Hey." I greeted him with a sensual peck on the lips. "I missed you." I said truthfully.

"I missed you, too." Lucas said before wrapping his arms around my slightly shorter frame. "Now what's all this about today?"

"Oh, right...Brooke and Peyton know...about us." I said as I sat in the middle of my bed, Lucas finding a spot close to me.

"Oh, you told them? That's cool. I thought you wanted to do it together, but that's coo--"

"Umm...actually...Brooke found one of your...ermm...texts." I said, averting my gaze away from his, hoping he wouldn't get angry.

"What?! You showed them?!"

"No. I told you, Brooke found it."

"And what did they say?" His voice was calmer with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"They...laughed. Which, in turn, made me laugh." I smiled shyly, leaning myself onto Lucas as we both fell back onto the bed.

"Well...as long as they know, I guess." Lucas teased before turning over to face me. "Now...about this morning..." He started, giving me a playfully serious look. I just burst into laughter before I was hushed by Lucas' lips pressed against mine, sending a shock of electricity surging through every nerve in my body. "I love it when you laugh."

"Well, I love it when you kiss me." I teased before he sensually kissed me again. I fell into the kiss, feeling nothing but his soft lips on mine. "Mm...as much as I love love LOVE this, you know we have to stop." I pointed out. He sighed heavily before responding.

"You know, it's kind of sad that my cell phone has a better sex life with you than I do." he joked, grinning widely.

"Well, that's because it has a very good long-distance plan. It can go away to anywhere and I can have a dirty sexting relationship with it while I have you to be with."

"Mm." He groaned before kissing me again. "Lucky phone."

"Tell him I said so." I joked, before pulling him on top of me. Then, I felt a vibration in Lucas' pocket. I gave him an amused look as he took it out of his pocket.

"I think it's excited to hear that." he teased before answering it. "It was Keith. He wants me home for dinner." he said disappointedly.

"Dinner? It's almost nine." I said, looking at my own cell phone for the correct time. I was right.

"Yeah, well. Kind of got sidetracked with some stuff. Turns out my ma finally admitted to having feelings for Keith by kissing him at the airport."

"Are you serious? That's awesome! Finally, she realized it."

"I know, it's great." He had a small smile on his face, but he was really happy. He's wanted this for quite some time considering he thought of Keith as his own father, other than his real father. "Alright, Bran. Got to go." He kissed me lightly before exiting out of my room.

"Oh! We're going out with everybody tomorrow night. Look twenty-one, okay?" I called, grinning widely.

"So, I guess my Power Rangers pajamas are out of the question then, huh?" he joked before closing the door.

I decided to turn in early, not knowing how late we were going to be out tomorrow night. I turned on my iPod and fell asleep to the song _Cross My Heart_ by Marianas Trench.

_Take me with you_

_I start to miss you_

_Take me home_

_I don't wanna be alone tonight_

_And I hate to want to show you_

_I will run to you, to you 'til I_

_Can't stand on my own anymore_

_I cross my heart and hope to die_

**ONE TREE HILL**

I woke up to the sound of my aunt vacuuming outside my door. I stretched myself out, trying to wake myself up completely...no such luck. I just became more comfortable and warmer. I laid in bed for at least another ten minutes before deciding to get up and make some breakfast for me and my aunt.

I looked at the clock. It was only 8 o' clock. But God, I slept for eleven hours...that's horribly exhausting. I could start to feel my sluggishness consume me from oversleeping so much. I rubbed my eyes as I opened my door and was instantly washed over with sunlight coming directly from the kitchen window.

"God, Kaylin. Are you trying to permanently blind me or something?" I was pretty groggy, so it only came out as a faint mumble against the noise of the vacuum. That, and Kaylin had her headphones in. So, it was practically useless to start a conversation. I grabbed my phone and called Lucas.

"Mmm..." Lucas greeted sleepily over the phone.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you or anything." I felt guilty for thinking that just because I was awake that he would be, too.

"That's ok. I need to get up, anyway. What's up?" He was starting to sound more alert and awake so I continued.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to come over for breakfast. I was gonna make something for me and Kaylin, and I thought, maybe, you'd want some, too." I grabbed a skillet from one of the cupboards and opened the fridge to get out some eggs, milk, and butter.

"Sounds great. Give me a few minutes to recover and I'll be right over."

"Can't wait." I said happily before shutting my phone. I got out the pancake mix and the bacon from the freezer. I mixed the ingredients for the pancakes and put the bacon in the microwave to defrost. I heated the pan up for the bacon and started got out a griddle. The sizzle of the bacon that hit the pan let off a few pops, splattering me somewhat with hot butter. I pulled reflexively pulled back as the hot butter found it's way onto my bare feet.

"Morning, Brandon." Kaylin greeted as she put the vacuum back into the hallway closet.

"Morning, Kay. I'm making us breakfast, so don't eat anything yet."

"Thaanks, Brandon! You're such a good nephew." she said happily. "I'll start a pot of coffee, then." I only nodded as I focused on flipping over a two of the pancakes.

"Mmm...something smells good." Lucas said as he walked from my bedroom door.

"Whoa! You two didn't...again, did you?" Kaylin asked, slightly uncomfortable with the subject.

"What? No, no, no. I just came in from the back." Lucas explained frantically, reassuring my aunt that we didn't spend the night having hot, sweaty man sex in my room.

"Oh, well we have a front door, Lucas. Try using it some time." Kaylin teased, a small smile on her face.

"I'll remember that." Lucas said as he made his way toward me. "Need any help?"

"Just grab us some plates, coffee mugs, and forks. I'm almost done." I said, smiling gratefully at him before pecking him on the lips. He nodded and went straight for the cupboard above the coffee pot for the mugs."

"Good man, Luke." Kaylin teased as she sat down at one of the four chairs at our kitchen table.

"So, Kaylin. I didn't hear you come in last night. I must have passed out completely or something." I said, slightly confused as I plated the bacon and pancakes with the dishes Lucas handed me.

"Well, that's because I didn't come home last night..." she mentioned suggestively. I chuckled at her, meeting her playful gaze. I'm glad she finally has Larry. She hasn't really had any lasting relationships, but I can tell that this one would last.

"Oh, speaking of men that seem to like you, Rick came by again." She instantly tensed up, staring down at the coffee Lucas had poured for her.

"...Yeah? What'd he want?" she asked distractedly while pouring sugar and creamer into her mug.

"He didn't tell me anything. He was just waiting on our porch for you...and across the street..." I said, now setting the plates down in the middle of the table.

"Just...don't let him know I was here, okay? Please?" I nodded my head reassuringly.

"Wow...break up that bad?"

"Break u-- Oh...yeah. It just...hurts...to see him, that's all." she said, not all too convincingly. I let it slide and got back to serving my boyfriend his breakfast. He looked at me gratefully before digging in.

"Wow, these are great, Brandon." Lucas thanked. I smiled sweetly at him before cutting a piece off the pancake and dipping it in a puddle of maple syrup and popping it into my mouth. They were probably the best pancakes I've ever made. I looked back up at Kaylin, and she just disinterestedly ate her breakfast and flipped through one of her magazines. God, what did this guy do that hurt Kaylin so much?

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Bye, babe. Thanks for the breakfast." Lucas thanked, kissing me softly, a hint of bacon and maple syrup still on his lips. "Keith wants to get in a quick game of basketball before tonight." He then turned around and left out the front door, closing it behind him.

"What's tonight?" Kaylin asked curiously, looking up from the pages of the latest issue of _Vogue_.

"Oh. We were just going to hang out...with everybody...at the...mall." I lied, before taking a huge swig of coffee.

"Oh, sounds fun. I'll probably be out with Larry again." she informed, taking a small bite of bacon.

"Oooh." I teased before cutting into my last pancake. She just gave me a playful smile before going back to her magazine. "Do we need to have...the 'talk'?" I asked with fake seriousness, setting down my fork in emphasis.

"You're about a week too late, Brandon." she said stoically before taking another sip of her coffee. I chuckled heartily before finishing my breakfast.

**ONE TREE HILL**

I texted Haley to tell Nathan about me and Lucas. We would have told him ourselves, but he wasn't of much significance to me or Lucas. She said she would, considering they had made up this morning. Apparently, they shared their first kiss with each other in the front yard of her house, even after pissing her off last night. I'm happy that they're finally together, though. They can stop the chase and stick with the prize.

Then, I called up Jake and asked if he wanted to go to that bar with us tonight, which he gladly accepted since his parents were planning on taking their grandchild out for the night, anyways. Then, I asked if I could meet up at his house beforehand. I was planning on telling him about me and Lucas. Hopefully, it goes well.

"Hey, Jake." I greeted nervously. He was dressed in a light blue button up and black Dickies. I could tell that he really put a lot of thought into what to wear to a bar.

"Hey Brandon, come on in." He gestured to the living room. We still had about an hour to kill before we were going to head to the bar, so I sat down on the couch. "Do you want anything to drink or something?" Jake asked hospitably, still standing up.

"Jake," I chuckled, "just sit down. You know me well enough that if I get thirsty, I can grab my own drink."

"Right." he laughed before sitting down on the other side of the couch.

"So...there's been something I've wanted to say for...about a week. Now is as good a time as ever to tell you, so..." I looked away from his gaze, just so I wouldn't see the possible transition from concerned to furious. "Lucas and I...we're...umm...dating." I said, looking anywhere but at him.

"Okay...and?" he said, sort of egging me on to continue.

"AND?! I'm in a gay relationship with Lucas. Me and Lucas...we're gay...well, that's not completely true. I'm gay...Lucas is more...Bransexual..." I let out nervously.

"I knew that already, Brandon." he said, laughing softly. I turned back to him, and he was sporting an amused look across his face.

"What? Brooke told you, didn't she? Ugh, i'm gonna kill her..." I threatened playfully.

"No...Lucas did. At practice the other day." he informed me, taking me by surprise.

"...Lucas told you?" I asked, slightly confused at what he was trying to tell me.

"Yeah. He said that he told me because he knew that you and I were such good friends, so he felt it was important and all. I mean, the only thing I'm mad at is that you didn't tell me first." he chuckled lightly.

"Oh...sorry." I apologized, truly feeling bad on how I didn't tell him sooner.

"Nah, that's okay. I got over it." he waved his hand in front of him for emphasis on how okay he was with it. "Wait...Brooke knows?" he asked incredulously.

"And Peyton..." I told him, now leaning back onto the couch cushion.

"You told Brooke Davis AND Peyton Sawyer before you told me?" he said, trying to sound angry but failed to do so.

"No, I didn't tell them. They found a sext from Lucas on my phone." Oh shit! Why do I have such a big mouth. I took an intake of air realizing what I had just said. He just laughed...hard...kind of like how Brooke and Peyton laughed the other day. After that was over, we just watched television until it was time to go to the bar to meet up with out friends...and Nathan.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"Wow, these look pretty real, Brooke. Nice work!" I said, excited for my first fake ID. "Wait...my name is Abram Linkson? No way their gonna fall for this!"

"Relax, mine says Marzipan Corley. If they haven't figured it out before when I've used mine, then they won't figure out yours." Brooke stated while handing out ID's to the other five people. They all laughed at their names as they put it into their wallets and pockets.

"Alright, let's go." Nathan said. We turned the corner and walked down the sidewalk to the bar. We entered and there was instant clatter of pitchers and conversation.

"Wow, crowded tonight." I said, looking around at all the people.

"Yup. Easier to pass with our ID's." Brooke said softly before making her way to the bar. Nathan and Jake followed suit. The rest of us went to the open pool table and started a game. Haley and I versus Lucas and Peyton. We were winning when the other three came back with a few pitchers of beer and some cups.

"Wow, Brooke. You were right. Go figure." Haley teased before grabbing a glass of beer for herself.

"Ha-ha, Tutor Girl." she replied sorely. Lucas got me and him both a glass of beer to share.

"Well, well...Brandon Wooldridge." greeted a guy I never thought I'd ever see again.

"Dustin!" I exclaimed, hugging my cousin firmly. It's been over three years since I last saw him. Last time I had, he was moving out of his parents house. I never knew where he was moving to, but I guess this was it.

Dustin was a bit burlier than I remember him, but he still had the same dark hair, buzzed off but was growing back rapidly, and piercing green eyes and the same stubble that was sprinkled across his jawline.. You could tell we were related by how many features we had in common. I looked back and saw the others in bewilderment. They weren't really sure why I was hugging him, or even who he was.

"Oh, sorry guys. This is Dustin, my cousin." I announced. "Dustin that's Lucas, Jake, Haley, Nathan. Peyton and Brooke." I introduced, pointing at each of them individually. They all waved back, some more eager than others...(Brooke)

"So...aren't you a little young to be in here?" Dustin asked me teasingly. I know he was cool about it considering he went out to a few bars back in the day, before he was of age.

"Aren't you a little old to be lecturing your little cousin?" I teased back, hoping to get a reaction, which I did.

"Dude...I'm only twenty-one. That's so not old!" I just laughed at how it felt like old times already.

"That's all. Hmm...you look about thirty." I joked before turning back to my friends and boyfriend.

"So much for being ourselves tonight..." Lucas whispered.

"Oh, don't worry. Dustin was the first person I came out to. He's cool with it." I informed, making Lucas ease up.

"By the way, Lucas is my boyfriend." I blurted out to Dustin nonchalantly. I could hear somebody choke on their beer behind me.

"What?" Nathan asked in confusion.

"Haley! I told you to tell him!" I said, laughing slightly at Nathan coughing up more booze.

"Well, I didn't think you meant so soon!" Haley defended, patting Nathan on the back for his recovery.

"Oh, Lord. This can go either one of two ways." I started, whispering to Lucas and Dustin. "He'll either be cool with it and continue to be the jackass he always was to us, or he'll punch both of us in the face, call us 'fags,' and disown you...even more than he already has." I joked, still looking amused at Nathan's choking. Now, he got the attention of half the people in the bar. "Either way...lose/lose."

He finally recovered and said he was fine with it and that he'd keep it a secret if he needed to. Huh...maybe Nathan wasn't so bad after all. Dustin decided to join us since his buddies didn't show up.

We were all sloshed pretty well, except for Peyton anyways. She was our designated driver. The whole night was a bit fuzzy...all I kind of remember is a sign saying "Link Cart," and that doesn't exactly ring a bell.

**ONE TREE HILL**

I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock. I groaned loudly at how loud it was, my head throbbing insanely, as if a jackhammer was doing it's thing on my skull. Then, two more groans could be heard. That's when I realized I wasn't alone in my bed. I looked over and saw Lucas, his limbs splayed out, and Dustin at the foot of my bed, half of his body hanging off the end of the bed. They both stirred, instantly caressing their heads. We all winced at the little streaks of sunlight that peaked through my black-painted wooden blinds. Then, I felt a sting of pain on my hip. I looked over, and stealthily peeked under my pants to see the number 3 tattooed on it, bandages spotted with blood, sticking the the rim of my jeans. Oh, crap. That sign didn't say "Link Cart." Damn it, it said "Ink Art." Jeez, how wasted were we? I turned over to look at Lucas, who was turned over onto his stomach, still groaning slightly. Then, I saw his very own tattoo. Some Asian symbol of some sort.

"Morning, Bran. I heard your alarm go off an--" Kaylin said, her voice sounding like it were coming through a speaker next to my ear, going full blast. The three of us winced reflexively. I looked over at Kaylin, who didn't look too happy once she realized what happened.

"You guys are hungover?!" she yelled, the frequency making me wince in pain.

"It's my fault." blurted Dustin as he rolled over to face Kaylin.

"Dustin? Wha--"

"I snuck them and their friends some beer, totally my fault." he continued, lying to Kaylin to save us from even more punishment.

"What are you even doing in Tree Hill, Dustin?" she asked, lowering her voice to a volume we could stand without the feeling of our heads about to explode.

"I moved here a while back." he explained, slowly getting up from the foot of my bed.

"Come on, I'll make you boys some coffee." she said a little less sternly.

**ONE TREE HILL**

**What'd you guys think? I would LOVE some feedback, considering this chapter took me one and a half days to make. PLEASE! REVIEW!!!**

**A/N: I also have a picture of Dustin up on my profile, if you want to know who I picture as him.**

**Next chapter should be up next week. Until then, REVIEW!!! =)**


	8. Hallelujah

**Hey again, everybody. Officially eight chapters in...YAY!!! Hopefully you've enjoyed them all so far. I wouldn't know because only two different people have reviewed XD And I know that's it's been absolutely forever since I updated, and I'm truly sorry. But I hope you review anyways! =)**

**Thanks again to naleysocute23 for being the first (and most likely, only) person to review that last chapter! =)**

**And a HUGE thank you to Accidenta1 ! You totally made my day! Everybody should be thankful because you were the one that inspired me to continue this weekend. YAY! lol**

**A/N: This chapter is all about episodes ten. What I'm taking from episode ten is the open mic night, of course, and Whitey canceling basketball practice, but it's for a different reason.**

**Should make for an interesting chapter, don't you think?**

**Chapter 8 - "Hallelujah" by Jeff Buckley**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Tree Hill or any of its characters, but I do own Brandon and all the other OC's.**

**ONE TREE HILL**

"You know, Haley, now that Karen's away, business doesn't seem as...lively as it used to be..." I informed her, looking around at the restaurant where only two people were eating...during the lunch rush.

"I know, I know." Haley agreed as she wiped down the counters. "I've been trying everything, though. Amazing specials to discounts t-to a free cup of coffee with every purchase. Nothing's been lasting for more than a few hours." Then, an idea popped into my head.

"How about some entertainment?" I asked, leaning over the counter to where she ducked behind to put away a plate of morning pastries. "I'm thinking something like...an art show, fashion show...I don't know. Just...something to bring customers in that doesn't involve caffeine or egg white omelets." I teased, trying to get her to agree to my idea.

"That's it! How about, instead of a crappy art gallery or an expensive fashion show, we get a band?" Haley was now smiling two miles wide, bringing a smile to my face, too.

"Not bad, newbie. The student has surpassed the master, I see." She punched me lightly and started to rant on about who we could possibly book for it.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"So...Peyton, we need help finding an awesome band for the cafe," I started, gesturing my hands throughout the entire process, "and since you have great music taste, I mean, obviously, you can help us pick a band...?" It sounded more like a question than anything else. It took her a few moments before she answered.

"Well, why spend money on booking a band when you can have a 'Mic Night?'" she grinned slyly, her arms folded in emphasis to how good her idea actually was.

"...Haley, why the hell didn't we think of that???" I said playfully to the friend next to me, who only gave me an equally playful look. "Peyton...they will fucking make a plaque in your name for this idea, just so you know. You know, no pressure or anything like that..." I teased, making the three of us burst into laughter.

"Alright, how about you guys go ahead and get the word out as much as you can, and I'll make the fliers that we can post around town." Peyton said, already getting her sketchpad out for an idea.

"Sounds great." Haley exclaimed ecstatically.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"You know, he's probably just busy." my cousin, Austin, said. Lucas hasn't called me in a few days and I had no idea why. Last time we spoke to each other, we left on good terms, and then 'poof!' Everything was different. "Why not just go next door and talk to him."

"Because that's stupid. I don't need him to make me feel better..." I said unconvincingly, which only got me a knowing look Austin from across my room as I sat on my computer desk and he was sprawled out on my bed, arm under his head to prop himself up. "Plus, he's not home, I already checked..." I informed him, looking away right before he chuckled.

Now that I found out Austin lived in Tree Hill, he hung out at here a lot. It almost felt like old times when he used to come over to my old house and we would just hang out in my room for hours. It was great, he was the older brother I never had, but better. We didn't really tease each other like brothers, but we were there for each other like we were.

"You know, he probably misses you, too. No, wait. Screw the 'possibly,' he fucking misses you..." he said, baring a small grin. I rotated back and forth in my computer chair in frustration. Then, my mind flooded with a bunch of rhetorical 'whys.' Why couldn't it just be easy? Why couldn't I just still live with my parents and my two little sisters, Megan and Ashley? Why couldn't Lucas just call me or come over?

Each of my questions varied in tones, some sad, others whiny.

"Sssh, I think I can hear somebody bouncing a basketball outside..." I shushed, slightly neurotic from the situation. I peeked out from the blinds of the window on my door, and there he was; just getting back from his morning work-out. A gleeful smile sneaked on to my face as I had the overwhelming feeling of anxiousness internally erupt.

"Now or never, B." Austin said stoically as he laid his head down on one of my pillows and stared up toward the ceiling at nothing in particular.

"Guess you're right..." A sudden wave of nervousness struck me, leaving a flushed feeling to linger inside of me. With all the willpower I had, I inched for that doorknob that led me out into the open with Lucas. Click. It opened, and slowly creaked open, causing Lucas to turn around and face me with a look of worry on his face. But it made no sense. What could the most amazing guy be worried about? As I approached him, I could see that he was trying to pull himself together, hoping I wouldn't notice anything that would give him away.

"Hey, Bran." he said coolly, no sound of nervousness in his voice. He hugged me lovingly and I could feel myself become happier with every passing moment I was in his arms. "I missed you." he said softly, not letting me go.

"Well then how come I haven't heard from you in a few days?" I asked playfully, but was still uncontrollably curious about the situation.

"Sorry, practice has been killer lately." There was something in his voice, something that I couldn't quite pinpoint about it that made him sound like he was hiding something. I didn't want to dwell on it, though, because whatever it was was most likely none of my business.

"Aww, I'm sorry. Come over later and I can give you a nice massage." I said suggestively, getting Lucas to look at me lustily. "What do you say, Lucas? A _release_...of tension from your muscles...?"

"And as amazing and sexy as that sounds, I have to help Peyton with some open mic night at my mom's restaurant." he said, sighing into the nape of my neck.

"God fucking dammit, I knew it would come back and bite me in the ass..." I grumbled against his chest. Suddenly, I felt Lucas' hand squeeze my left ass cheek, making me gasp slightly.

"All hot and distracting jokes aside, what do you mean?" he smirked slyly, his blue eyes shimmering with amusement.

"Well, Grabby, I helped come up with the idea for it. Your mom's business needed something to get that spark back, so Haley and I came up with parts of it and Peyton placed the missing pieces." Lucas was looking at me somewhat dreamy-like. It was amazing to know he was looking at me like that, to know that I was the one person he could look at like that. "What?" I chuckled nervously, my eyes gazing into his.

"You're just so...incredible." he whispered into my ear soothingly, his warm breath lingering on the tip of my earlobe. Moments like these were so sexy. It was just him and I, talking like we were the only two people within a 100-mile radius, although knowing full-well my cousin and aunt were not too far from where we were standing.

"If you think of me that way, imagine what I think of you." It was at that moment that his lips crashed into mine, making a symphony of emotions erupt from inside of me. It was mostly passion, lust, care, but I knew that it was also love. Sure, love is an amazing feeling, but never this early in a relationship. It had only been, what? Two months since I had moved here? Yeah, love at this stage is it's very own taboo. It's known but never spoken of in fear of rejection. That might be one of my fears, but my worst fear – that he feels the same way about me but figures out I'm not right for him, that all this was just experimentation.

**ONE TREE HILL**

"So it's finally here." Haley said nervously as she shuffled through the restaurant, maneuvering her way around the crowd that settled in front of the stage I had helped Haley put this point, people were starting to flood the place. Some were alone, maybe meeting up with somebody here or just here for the sole purpose of listening to the live entertainment, or maybe even going up on stage and be that live entertainment. Others were here with friends, significant others, enemies. They were all here, hiding under one roof for one night, just one event, that can help them forget about what lays outside of this building.

My friends just started arriving, too. Brooke, Peyton, and Lucas were sitting at a table together while my cousin and aunt were at their own table. Jake had to take care of Jenny tonight, so he won't even be here. I wasn't hanging out with them because I promised Haley to help her a little bit. And by a little bit, she meant that she wanted me to announce it. I loathed public speaking. I get out of breath and my palms get all sweaty. Let me tell ya, it's not a pretty sight. But hopefully, I can suck it up and get it done right.

"Alright, go get 'em, sexy." Brooke said calmly in my ear, Peyton and Lucas in tow.

"Hey, that's my line." Lucas teased, giving me a suggestive look. I couldn't help but look away as I blushed at his comment. Sure, Brooke had said it, but it was friendship, not lo...not whatever I have with Lucas.

As I approached the stage, I heard the bell near the door signifying people were still coming in. Maybe we should wait for everybody to get here? I looked at the clock; already ten minutes late. Oh, well. Better get started. I grabbed the mic, and thankfully, I was perfectly normal.

"Alright, I wanna start off by saying welcome to Karen's Cafe's Mic Night." Everybody cheered and clapped. Brooke even whistled. God, she's such a nut. But of course, I mean that in the friendly, non-condescending way that our relationship is established upon...okay...maybe I should start speaking again... "I'm sure we got some great talent here tonight, so who's going to be the first musician to break the ice?" Silence. "Any one...?" I swear, I could hear crickets chirping... "Come on, somebody's gotta have the _cajones_ to get up here."

"I'll do it." called a familiar voice from the back of the room. I was shocked to see Jake with a nervous look on his face. I wasn't shocked to see Jake here, but I was shocked to see Jenny sitting in her carriage in Jake's left hand, an acoustic guitar in the other.

"Alright, come on up. Jake Jagielski, everybody!" I announced, getting a welcoming hand from the audience. I hopped off stage and patted Jake on the shoulder. "You ready for this?"

"The music or the 'coming out?'...so to speak..." he joked lightly. I could tell that he was dreading the moment that he would step up onto the stage and announce to the world that he did, in fact, have a precious baby girl.

"Just...get up there and do what you gotta do, man." I encouraged him before lightly patting his back and finding a seat across the room in between Lucas and Peyton.

"Hey everybody. This is my daughter, Jenny." I could feel the tension in the room engulf the atmosphere.

"Jake has a kid?" Brooke asked astoundingly, never taking her eyes off of the stage.

"Yup." Lucas and I both said in unison. I looked at him, and he had the same questioning look that I was giving him. The look that asked 'you knew?' I just gave him a small grin before looking back at the stage. He wrapped his left arm around me and I scooted closer so that every possible fiber of me was on fire from the body heat that he was giving off.

"Alright, well, I'm gonna go ahead and begin."

_Well I heard there was a secret chord  
that David played and it pleased the Lord  
But you don't really care for music, do ya?  
Well it goes like this :  
The fourth, the fifth, the minor fall and the major lift  
The baffled king composing Hallelujah_

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...

Well your faith was strong but you needed proof  
You saw her bathing on the roof  
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya  
And she tied you to her kitchen chair  
She broke your throne and she cut your hair  
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...

Baby I've been here before  
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor,  
I used to live alone before I knew ya  
And I've seen your flag on the marble arch  
and love is not a victory march  
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...

Well there was a time when you let me know  
What's really going on below  
But now you never show that to me do ya  
But remember when I moved in you  
And the holy dove was moving too  
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah

Hallelujah...

Maybe there's a God above  
But all I've ever learned from love  
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew ya  
And it's not a cry that you hear at night  
It's not somebody who's seen the light  
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu...  
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu...  
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah

When he was done, the entire audience was clapping insanely. He smiled and carried Jenny and his guitar off-stage.

"Way to go, Jake." I said happily, getting up from my seat to greet him again. Jenny was, miraculously, asleep through it all, the tiny slits of her eyes closed shut.

"Thanks, Bran. I should probably get going, though. Put this one to bed." he said, grinning widely. In the background, a lot of yelling could be heard. People outside were fighting rather loudly. Wait...I think one of them is my aunt's voice. I rushed outside, the gang alongside me, to see her and Rick feuding disruptively along the sidewalk.

"Just leave me alone, Rick! Leave me, Brandon, and everybody else in my life alone!" she yelled angrily.

"Hey, what the fuck are you doing, man?" Austin pushed through the crowd and I followed him closely.

"Leave her the hell alone, asshole!" It came out before I had a chance to censor myself to silence, but he was harassing her in a way I've never seen by stalking her cosntantly.

"That's great, Kaylin." he laughed in amusement. "Sick your little pitbulls on me. Fight your own battles, bitch!"

"You better shut up before I make you shut up." Austin threatened, approaching him bravely, his fists balled up, his knuckles turning white.

"This isn't your battle, kid. Step off."

"What are you gonna do, Rick? Huh? Go on, hit me. I so want you to do that right now." my cousin seethed, his face red with anger. "Come on, right here." he gestured toward his chin, instigating Rick to what he will.

"Whatever, man. Just remember to ask Kaylin why she got high off of my drugs for years and now, all of a sudden, she won't pay up what she owes me. The fucking cunt..."

I looked at Kaylin disbelievingly. Tears started to form in her eyes as her looks shot between Austin and I. I turned to Lucas, tears now forming in my eyes as the betrayal finally hit me.

"Can I stay over your house tonight?" I asked him, my voice shaking with emotion.

"Wha-? But--" he stuttered out, gesturing toward my aunt. "You're aunt--"

"Yes or no, Lucas?" I could feel my chin start to tremble, unable to say much more than what was needed, now. He just nodded knowingly. "Let's go." I said, unable to even look at my aunt. I couldn't help but feel that the one family member, the one adult figure in my life, can't even be honest with me. I could feel my nostrils flare uncontrollably as my emotions turned to anger. I had to gnash my teeth together to keep myself from hitting something as I got into the passenger seat of Lucas' car. Lucas looked at me, worry in his eyes. After he started the ignition, he lay his hand out in between us. I laced my finger into his as we drove off.

**I know, it's been forever. But even though, you guys should review! Tell me what you think! =)**


	9. APOLOGIES!

**OKAY!!! So, I can explain; I swear! I was almost done with a new chapter when all of a sudden gasp my computer shuts off. At first, I'm all like, "Okay, no big deal...I'll just have to turn it back on." But when I did, the unholiest thing happened...my computer had some sort of virus going by the name of "Antivir"...ironic, right? I'm not really sure how I got it, but I did. Now, my computer is all better thanks to a $70 purchase of Norton, but all my files are lost...so it's like having a new computer without all the glam. So, I just wanted to tell you guys that I am trying my best to update, I promise you. Don't give up!**

**~Ritchie**


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